


White Noise, Black Days: Meaning and Memory of Life

by Rochelle_Templer



Category: City Hunter (Manga)
Genre: Episode Related, F/M, Mild Innuendo, Missing Scenes, additional scenes after episode, brief mentions of violence, mentions of psychological distress
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-05
Updated: 2018-02-03
Packaged: 2019-02-10 21:49:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 39,368
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12920946
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rochelle_Templer/pseuds/Rochelle_Templer
Summary: A terrorist attack forces Kaori and Ryo to consider the directions their lives are taking. A re-imagining of episodes 100-101 of the anime.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> One of my favorite stories that was not in the manga was the two-part "Goodbye Hard-Boiled City" (or "Atomic Blackmail" for some of my French or Italian readers). But even though I loved it, I still wished we had been given even more, thus why I wrote this fic which is a sort of "expansion" of those episodes. 
> 
> Language note: Ippatsu is Ryo's counter word of choice for mokkoris. XD

The day had started in a prosaic enough way for Kaori Makimura. After getting up early and making breakfast for herself and Ryo, she was ready to start her normal routine of getting him eat and then looking for work with the ever present possibility of having to hand out flyers.

Today though, as she went through the motions of cooking, Kaori felt oddly out of sorts. Instead of feeling like parts of a comfortable routine, everything from making breakfast to setting the table felt like pieces of an inescapable prison. Each motion seemed to only add to the oppressive feel of the situation. It took a tremendous amount of effort to actually finish the food and put it on the table. Once she was done, however, she was faced with the task of getting Ryo out of bed, and today that was something else that she did not look forward to doing.

Kaori headed off toward Ryo’s room, pausing once she reached the door. Truthfully, she didn’t want to walk into his room with a bitter or angry attitude and she decided to take a moment to figure out what was bothering her.

As she searched for a reason for her mood, her mind drifted back to a conversation she had had with her old high school friend, Chiemi yesterday.

* * *

 

_“Hey Kaori,” Chiemi’s voice chimed over the phone. “How are you? Are you still working with Saeba-san?”_

_“I’m fine,” Kaori smiled. “And yes, I am still working with Ryo. Where are you these days?”_

_“I’m back in Paris,” Cheimi said. “And I have to tell you the news: I’m getting married.”_

_“What? Really?” Kaori asked, shock filling her voice. “When did this happen? Who is he?”_

_“Do you remember Shunichi Azuki?” Cheimi replied. “From our class?”_

_“Who could forget him?” Kaori laughed. “Just about all the girls wanted to date him.”_

_“It turns out that his father has a business that has offices both here and in Tokyo,” Cheimi said. “I met Shunichi here when I had a couple days off from one of my international flights. Kaori, he is such a gentleman now. So mature, so worldly…and still so handsome.  I ended up taking a vacation with him and three months later, he asked me to marry him.”_

_“Congratulations,” Kaori said. “I’m very happy for you.”_

_“Thank you, Kaori,” she said. “We plan to have the wedding in Paris and then we are going to have a honeymoon along the coast of France before moving back to Japan. It’s like a dream come true.”_

* * *

 

Kaori let out a long sigh. She was happy for Chiemi, and yet she still felt twinges of jealousy and regret twist at her heart. It seemed as if all her old friends from high school were getting married and building families while she remained alone with no prospects in her future.

 _‘Chiemi is the same age as me and she had so many boyfriends before finally settling down,’_ she thought to herself. ‘ _Whereas I haven’t even had one.’_

_‘What’s wrong with me? Chiemi found it so easy to love while I find it so difficult. Not that I’ve had a bunch of opportunities to find out about dating and love anyway.’_

_‘Is this how the rest of my life is going to go: alone with no understanding of what it means to love someone?’_

Kaori let out another sigh and tried to smile. Whenever she had thoughts like these, she tried to remind herself that they were not practical. Working in the underground made things like dating and romance problematic at best.

_‘Even if I were to try to date someone, how would I explain my work to them? Even worse, how could I explain my living arrangement with Ryo, Japan’s number one pervert?’_

Kaori let out a short laugh and reached for the doorknob. The more she thought about it, the more she tried to convince herself of the ridiculousness of her romantic longings. The experiences she had had with men over the past few years, and with Ryo in particular, should have been enough to permanently put her off to the idea of romance.

But while Kaori was certain that she could cast these ideas out of her mind, but she wasn’t so sure about purging them from her heart.

Despite all of her concerns and worries, she forced herself to smile and flung the door. She was greeted by loud snoring and the sight of Ryo groping his own pillows with a smile on his face.

‘ _I don’t want to know what he is dreaming about,’_ Kaori thought to herself, putting a hand over her own face. ‘ _Well, at least he has some clothes on for a change.’_

“Ryo! Time to get up,” Kaori said, yanking the blankets away from him. “Stop trying to sleep the day away.” Ryo blinked his eyes open and scowled at her.

“Kaori, give it a rest,” he muttered.  “Why won’t you ever let me sleep in?”

“Because we haven’t had any good paying jobs for a while now and you keep going out and spending money like we have it to burn,” she replied, her voice getting progressively louder. “We need to rebuild our savings and until we do, you are getting up at a decent hour and looking for work with me.”

Kaori clenched her hands and walked toward the door way.

“So get up and eat your breakfast,” she said as she walked out. “And don’t think for one second that you’re getting out of handing out flyers if I can’t find anything on the board today.”

* * *

 

Eventually Ryo stumbled toward the table, plopped down onto a chair, and started to eat while Kaori finished her breakfast. She cleared the table away of her dishes and sat back down across from Ryo.

“Ryo,” she said. “Saeko-san called her yesterday while you were out. You’re not working with her secretly, are you?”

“No,” Ryo replied, exasperation evident in his tone. “I already told you earlier this week that Saeko cheated me out of yet another pair of mokkori points, so I’m not taking on any jobs for her, no matter how many more mokkori points she is offering.”

“Just making sure,” Kaori said with a huff. “I know how fast Saeko-san can get you to change your mind when she’s offering mokkori for compensation.”

Ryo frowned and went back to eating his food silently. Kaori, wanting to change the mood, decided to switch topics.

“Say Ryo, I got a call from Chiemi yesterday,” she said. “You remember her, don’t you? My old friend from high school who worked as a stewardess.”

“Of course,” Ryo said, finally starting to smile. “Is she flying back into Tokyo soon? Maybe I can finally get that date I was cheated out of before.”

“Not likely,” Kaori smirked at him. “Chiemi’s getting married here soon. She’s with her finance, who is rich by the way, in Paris and is all excited about her upcoming wedding.”

“Married? Ah what a shame,” Ryo said. “And here I never got a chance to mokkori with her. I bet her fan club is going to be disappointed.”

“Who cares about them?” Kaori frowned. “And what do you mean a shame? Are you actually saying that it’s a shame that she’s getting married just because you weren’t able to get an _ippatsu_ from her?”

“Of course,” Ryo said. “That just puts me one step further away from my dream of having a chance to be with every beautiful woman on the planet. It’s why I have to meet with as many women as possible every day. Because you never know when they will stop being available.”

“You know, you do live with a woman who is currently available,” Kaori retorted. “And yet you don’t seem to be in any hurry to fulfill your dream with her.”

Kaori swallowed hard as soon as she finished talking. She hadn’t been able to stop those words from leaving her mouth and she immediately regretted not holding her tongue.

‘ _What am I saying? I don’t want to become this pervert’s mokkori conquest, right?’_ she asked herself.

‘ _Right?’_

A bead of sweat rolled off her brow as she waited to see how Ryo would react. Her nervousness quickly became irritation, however, when Ryo put his chopsticks down and put a hand to his forehead.

“A woman? Living here all this time?” he said, incredulous. “Where? Where is she? Where have you been hiding her, Kaori?”

“Ryo,” Kaori growled at him, her face growing red.

“Just kidding,” Ryo smirked at her. “I know what you meant. But you should know better than that by now, Kaori-kun. I already told you before that you’re the only lady friend I have who doesn’t make me feel mokkori, so it’s a moot point with you. You have nothing to worry about, ok?”

Kaori’s face became an even darker shade of red. She couldn’t decide if Ryo was trying to be nice to her by assuring her that he wouldn’t try to jump on her the way he did most other women or was being especially cruel by pointing out yet again that he didn’t consider her a woman.

“Oh hey, I need you to give me an advance on my monthly allowance,” he continued. “If I don’t pay my bill at Nekomama here soon, they will never let me back in. Then what will become of my mokkori chances with Yoko-chan and Asumi-chan?”

Ryo put his hand to the back of his head and laughed again before digging back into his food.

Meanwhile, Kaori gritted her teeth while her hands balled into fists. It was in that moment that she understood why she was so upset this morning. Her conversation with Chiemi yesterday had reminded her of the happiness she had been denied her entire life and that she continued to deny herself for the sake of this life that she had committed herself to. The current state of their bank account had reminded her of the seemingly futile struggle she continued to have in trying to run City Hunter as an even marginally successful agency and of Ryo’s cavalier attitude toward her efforts.

‘ _Ryo…he wouldn’t care if things were run into the ground as long as he found a way to get fed and keep having mokkori. He doesn’t care about anyone or anything else. And here I keep pouring my heart, soul and time into this and for what? Just so he can call me a transvestite again and drink all our savings away?’_

She barely realized it when a hammer appeared in her hands, but the second she noticed its presence, she brought it down on Ryo’s head.

“You’re not getting any kind of advance until we get a decent job and you cut back on your partying,” she yelled at him. “You’ll just have to pay your bill out of your regular allowance if you want back into that place so bad.”

Ryo rubbed his head and frowned at her again as he slowly got to his feet.

“Hey, I do most of the work on these jobs,” he yelled back. “I should get to spend the money the way I want.”

“If I were to let you do that, we wouldn’t be able to eat or buy supplies,” Kaori shot back. “There’s no way you can be trusted to manage our funds.”

“And by the way, who put you in charge of that in the first place?” Ryo sulked. “I always managed my own money before you came along, and I did just fine.”

“A minor miracle, I am sure,” Kaori said. “Considering your bad habits.”

“Enough,” Ryo barked at her. “I am tired of all this. Today I am going to go do what I want and you can feel free to do what you want.”

Ryo stormed off to his room and then returned a minute later dressed in his usual attire.

“I’ll be back tomorrow,” he said. “You can let me know then if we have any job requests…and if you are so concerned about money, maybe you’ll consider taking on a female client for a change.”

Ryo then walked out without another word, leaving a furious Kaori in his wake.

“Fine,” she yelled. “Go chase girls all day. See if I care.”

She then wished that she could have clobbered him with another hammer, but let out a giant sigh.

‘ _What’s the use? It’s not like the hammers teach him much of anything.’_

Despite her anger, Kaori found that she did not want to waste the entire day mad, so she took another deep breath and started the rest of her daily chores, hoping that things might improve by the end of the day.

* * *

 

Unbeknownst to either Ryo or Kaori, a figure dressed in dark clothes was watching their apartment carefully through a pair of binoculars for a while now. The man nodded to himself after watching the scene play out in front of him and the radio strapped to his belt crackled to life.

“Sir, we followed the other woman you mentioned,” the voice on the radio said. “The chances of her acquisition are not good. She spends most of her day working in some kind of coffeehouse and she is accompanied at all times by her partner.”

“Understood,” the man nodded. “Do not worry; I have another option in mind that might work out even better. Continue your surveillance for now though.”

“Yes sir.” The radio went silent and the man went back to watching Kaori begin her chores.

‘ _Yes, this one might suit our plans even better in the end. There’s much I can do with her.’_

* * *

 

Later that day, the sun was starting to set, and Ryo was still wandering the city streets.

He had felt bad about the argument he had had with Kaori and had considered several times trying to find some way to apologize to her. Still every time he did it, he was faced with the underlying reason for his forced hostility and tension around her: it was getting progressively harder to suppress his feelings for her and Ryo was getting close to his breaking point.

Ryo put a hand to his head and groaned. After the incident not too long ago with the Silver Fox, Ryo had felt a greater need to maintain some distance between himself and Kaori. For a while, things seemed to go according to plan: Ryo was able to continue working with her and life went on the way it had been before Silver Fox appeared in their lives.

The problem, however, was the fact that the incident had turned out to be a double-edged sword. Not only did it perfectly illustrate the reasons why Ryo refused to commit to any woman, it also forced him to become aware of how much Kaori meant to him and how vital she was to his heart.

Confused and conflicted, Ryo ended up buying some flowers and visiting Makimura’s grave.

As he knelt down in front of the headstone and placed the flowers down, he found himself wishing he could talk to his best friend again. Granted, Ryo knew that he would have been subjected to another lecture, but right now, it was one of the few things that sounded good to him.

‘ _I am still trying, Maki-chan,’_ he spoke silently. ‘ _I am still trying to take care of your precious sister. Of Kaori. I understand now why you doted on her so much, and I know I could never fill the hole your death left in her heart, but I….’_

Ryo bowed his head. His promise to Makimura was steadfast presence in his mind and heart. It was never far from the forefront of his thoughts and it guided his actions daily. Still, another part of him continued to wonder, to question: was he wrong? Was his current path what Makimura wanted for Kaori? Had Makimura meant for him to find the chance for a happy life for Kaori away from him and the world he lived in or was it possible…was it even remotely possible…that Makimura had wanted _him_ to be the one to give her that happy life?

‘ _What were you asking of me, Makimura?’_ Ryo asked him. ‘ _What is it that you wanted for Kaori? I wish you could tell me.’_

Ryo stood back up and stared at the ground for several minutes before walking away. He had not found an answer for his questions, but he did feel some comfort having spent some time with his friend. Ryo wasn’t sure if he believed in an afterlife, but for some reason, he was convinced that Makimura was still watching over him and Kaori to this day and thus, he always felt a little better after taking the time to acknowledge his continued presence.

After leaving the cemetery, Ryo decided that it was time for a change of mood. He didn’t want to brood anymore and was determined to find a way to have some fun this evening and for the rest of the night.

‘ _Tonight is a great night for getting drunk,’_ he told himself. ‘ _And that’s precisely what’s going to happen.’_

* * *

 

A couple of hours later, it was a drunken Ryo Saeba who was stumbling along the streets, looking for a woman. He was tired of drinking alone and wanted to find someone to help him forget his worries and troubles.

He had lurched into an alley when a young woman ran into him from the other direction.

‘ _She’s cute,’_ Ryo thought to himself. ‘ _She looks like she could be a lot of fun. Just the kind of girl I was looking for.’_

He tried asking her to go with him for a drink when a couple of men ran over toward them, intent on grabbing this woman for themselves.

‘ _Ah what pests,’_ Ryo thought to himself as he watched one of them pull out a knife. _‘Why do I have to deal with amateurs like this all the time?’_

Ryo grinned to himself as he quickly and deftly took each man down. No matter how much he had drank, the fact was that Ryo Saeba never allowed himself to get so drunk that he couldn’t deal with those who foolishly thought that they could catch him off guard.

“Am I strong or what?” he declared proudly after he was finished.  He then started to laugh, his own words seeming unbelievably funny to him.

The woman continued to stare at him and Ryo smiled in response. He hoped that she would take him up on his offer to go drinking with him.

Simply because, right now, it seemed like the best way to silence the ache of his heart.


	2. Chapter 2

The next morning, Kaori yawned and stretched as she got out of bed. She had slept soundly the night before and she knew that that was part of the reason for her change in mood.

* * *

 

After Ryo had left yesterday, she had tackled her usual household chores with an almost frantic energy, desperate for some kind of outlet for the cauldron of anger and resentment that was seething inside her. As she finished cleaning, her anger began to slowly bleed away and she started to be able to think clearly and with less bitterness. She did end up going to check the chalkboard at the Shinjuku station, but instead of handing out flyers when she didn’t find any work, she took the rest of the day off to shop for food and for a couple of things for herself. She also ended up renting a couple of videos, and after making herself a simple dinner, spent the rest of the day relaxing in front of the TV.

By the time she was ready to go to bed, Kaori felt somewhat refreshed and had a different perspective on the argument she had had with Ryo earlier that day.

‘ _Even though we’ve been in dire straits before, Ryo always finds work that pulls us out of the red in the end. He’ll probably end up doing that again before too long. And…as much as I hate it, he is right. If I would accept more female clients we wouldn’t have to worry about money as much in the first place.’_

Kaori stayed up for a while, waiting to see if Ryo would come home at a decent hour. When midnight came and there was no sign of him, Kaori figured that it would be better to wait to talk to him again tomorrow.

‘ _I guess I did overact somewhat,’_ she told herself. ‘ _I let my jealousy over Chiemi’s whirlwind romance and her upcoming wedding and honeymoon get to me. Even though what we have is nothing like that, Ryo does care about me to some extent, I think. After all, he always makes sure to protect me when I need him. I’m his partner, and that means something, right?’_

_‘Right?’_

At first Kaori found it hard to sleep, her lingering doubts and questions getting in the way of being able to relax. Eventually, however, she decided to take a different approach the next time she saw Ryo again.

‘ _I should try to be a little nicer to him once in a while. After all that is what partners do: they accept each other and try to help each other. Tomorrow I will try harder to be his partner and not just an obstacle in his path.’_

With that thought in her mind, Kaori slowly drifted to sleep. That night her dreams were filled with the errant wishes and imaginings of a different sort of life with Ryo, a life where her feelings were out in the open and where Ryo responded to them with tender feelings of his own. This time though instead of her dreams giving her a sense of regret, she found some comfort in them.

* * *

 

Kaori yawned again as she walked up the stairs and onto the floor with Ryo’s room. As she walked in she found his clothes scattered on the floor and she knew that he had finally come home.

“I guess Ryo was really drunk when he came home last night,” she said to herself.

Kaori started to gather up his clothes and slowly make her way to his room. She knew that he would probably have a massive hangover and would not be in the mood to get up any time soon, but she decided to wake him up anyway and offer him one of his favorite breakfasts of ham and eggs as a peace offering.

‘ _Ryo usually doesn’t get this drunk unless something is bothering him,’_ she told himself. ‘ _Maybe he has something on his mind too. Still…I wish he wouldn’t get that drunk. What if someone were to decide to try to attack him when he was like that? Ryo could get hurt.’_

Kaori’s concerns abruptly stopped, however, when she spotted a woman’s blouse at the top of the stairs leading to Ryo’s bedroom.

As she got closer and closer to his bedroom door, Kaori found more pieces of women’s clothing scattered about and a very unpleasant picture began to form in her mind.

‘ _Ryo! Did he…did he actually go out and….?’_

Kaori stomped toward his room and threw the door open.

There she found Ryo lying in bed, more than likely naked, with a woman lying on his arm. It did not take much imagination on Kaori’s part to guess what had happened in that bed between the two of them.

Kaori barely realized what she was doing as a larger than normal hammer appeared in her hands and she brought it down squarely onto Ryo’s head.

“Ryo! What is going on?”

Kaori felt her rage increase as Ryo sat up in bed seemingly oblivious to what could possibly be making her so angry. When the woman sat up and made it clear that she had had a “good night” last night, Kaori knew that there was no way she could calm down.

“Who are you? Why are you here?” Ryo asked the girl lying beside him.

As soon as Kaori heard that, her blood began to boil.

_‘I can’t believe this. I can’t believe that I was stupid enough to be worried or concerned about him. I can’t believe that I was actually thinking of trying to find a way to apologize to that jerk. He doesn’t care. He doesn’t care one bit about me. Why else would he go out, get drunk and then spend the night with a woman while not even bothering to learn her name? The fact that he doesn’t even remember her name just shows how little he cares about anyone other than himself.’_

Unable to listen to Ryo for a second longer, Kaori decked him and stormed out of the room. She immediately threw on some clothes and gathered up some of her things.

‘ _I can’t stay here,’_ she told herself. ‘ _I can’t stay here for one more second with this heartless, selfish bastard.’_

_‘I can’t do this anymore.’_

After grabbing a bunch of her stuff into a blanket and bundling it up, she marched up to Ryo’s floor to find him dressed and standing in the front room area.

“That’s it Ryo! I’m not your partner anymore.”

Kaori felt pangs of regret even as she said those words, but she chose to ignore them. She knew that if she continued to stay with him while he acted this way, her pride as a woman and her self respect as a person would never recover. She slammed the door in his face, determined to not look back for even a second.

She started to walk away from the door when she heard Ryo muttering to himself about how he couldn’t remember anything and wondering about who he had come home with last night.

‘ _That jerk still won’t face up to what’s he’s done. Unbelievable. Why on earth did aniki entrust me to some like him?’_

Kaori opened the door and glared at Ryo.

“Famous last words: take responsibility,” she said before slamming the door in his face again. She then walked out of the apartment building with the intent of walking out on Ryo as well.

* * *

 

Meanwhile, back in the apartment, Ryo continued to stand there, stunned by the events that had just occurred. He vaguely remembered running into this woman last night and asking her to drink with him. He was pretty sure that she had accepted and that she had decided to go home with him that night, but after that Ryo could not remember anything else.

‘ _I must have blacked out once I got home,’_ he told himself.

Ryo rubbed his head. He suddenly remembered that there were a couple of men who tried to attack him, but he figured that he must have taken care of them and since he didn’t feel any more murderous intent or sense any more enemies, he must have let himself succumb to his intoxication.

In that moment, Kaori’s words came back to him again.

‘ _Responsibility?’_

Ryo blinked hard. Responsibility was something he usually didn’t think about consciously even if he sometimes tried to actively take on some responsibility in his life from time to time.

Like when he made the promise to take care of Kaori.

He was distracted from these thoughts when the young woman held up a bowl to his face and declared that breakfast was ready. Still disorientated, Ryo decided that the best thing to do for the moment was give himself a chance to collect his thoughts and get something to eat.

He continued to watch the woman serve the rice into bowls and sat down beside her.

‘ _Well she is really cute. Just the type I would have tried to take home with me before Kaori….’_

Ryo swallowed hard and lifted the soup bowl to his lips. He had figured out what Kaori had been thinking when she walked into the room and he couldn’t blame her for being upset at him.

Still, he knew that the truth wasn’t much better: that he was so drunk that he didn’t remember this girl’s name and that he had invited her to his place with no thought about how things might turn out.

Ryo let out a sigh. He figured that it was only a matter of time before this girl lost her temper with her too, but he decided that he should at least try to be polite to her until that moment came…starting with trying to figure out her name.

“By the way, what’s your name?”

Ryo anticipated that she would be insulted by such a question, but instead she let him continue to guess until finally revealing that her name was Rumi Takahara.

 _‘Well, she’s a patient one at least,’_ Ryo thought to himself. His shock only grew when she asked to stay with him.

“Can’t I?” Rumi asked, her eyes pleading.

“Of course. You can stay forever.”

The words had left Ryo’s lips before he had even had a chance to really think about them. At the back of his mind though, he suspected that there was more to Rumi’s request than a simple desire to spend time with him.

‘ _Those men last night. I wonder if they were just random muggers…or were they after her in particular. And is it possible that she knows that she’s being targeted?’_

Ryo looked over at her again as he sipped more of his soup. He couldn’t be sure if he was just being paranoid or if his instincts were right on this one. He decided that a sure way to figure it out one way or the other was to find out if he had really had a mokkori night with her or not.

“Well Rumi-chan you were in my bed last night, weren’t you? I wonder if something happened.”

“I enjoyed it very much.”

Ryo’s mouth dropped open in surprise. There was, of course, his usual frustration at the idea that he could have actually had some mokkori and yet managed to somehow miss out on it again. But then he started to wonder if maybe Rumi just liked him after all.

Ryo invited her to bed again, but Rumi politely declined, declaring that she needed to attend to the household chores.

‘ _It’s as if she’s already moved in and made herself my girlfriend just like that,’_ Ryo mused. ‘ _That’s just not normal for a woman. There really must be something else going on here.’_

Ryo thought again of Kaori while he finished his breakfast. Despite what she said to him, Ryo knew that she would be back because she had left most of her stuff behind in her room downstairs. He had thought about going off to find her, but then thought about how angry she had been before she left.

‘ _Kaori wouldn’t listen to me right now no matter what I tried to tell her. I should just let her cool off and then when she comes back I can explain things and we can work it out.’_

_‘But then again…what if she doesn’t listen then either? What if she is serious about leaving this time?’_

_‘What if I were to just let her go?’_

Ryo felt his heart twist at that last question, but ignored it. He thought about how he had recently been trying to figure out what the best thing for Kaori was and it occurred to him that the both of them had just been given the chance to part ways.

‘ _Maybe this is for the best. Kaori can go back to having a normal life and I can have my freedom again. No more worrying about her, her moods, her lectures or having to protect her. I can do as I wish without having to take care of someone else. She’ll be happier and I’ll probably be happier in the long run.’_

Ryo smiled at Rumi again while he ate. He wasn’t sure how long this thing with Rumi would last, but he decided that he better enjoy it while he can.

* * *

 

Kaori watched the scene between Rumi and Ryo play out in front of her through a pair of binoculars from on top of a nearby building. Tears stung her eyes as she watched the way Ryo smiled at Rumi while he ate.

“That jerk Ryo! He didn’t even try to stop me.”

She stuffed her binoculars back into her bag and made her way down the building. She couldn’t understand what had possessed her to look in on Ryo, but now she regretted that she had done it.

_‘Did I actually think that he would be sitting around, wishing I would walk back through the door? Am I really that much of a moron?’_

Kaori knew that people were staring at her as she walked down the street with the huge bundle of her clothes on her back, but she didn’t care. All she could think about was the sight of Rumi in Ryo’s arms and the fact that he didn’t seem to care how she felt about any of this.

Kaori yanked her purse out of the bundle and found a hotel to check into. The desk clerk appeared reluctant to let her stay there, but the barely concealed rage in Kaori’s eyes had been enough to intimidate him into letting her check in. Kaori took her key, went to her room and threw her stuff onto the ground.

She then sank down onto the bed and started to weep.

‘ _Why am I crying? I shouldn’t cry over that loser. I’m finally free of him, his laziness, his endless mokkori hunts and his overall bad habits. I can finally have a chance to be happy and find a man who will actually treat me like a woman instead of a slave. I should be thrilled to get away.’_

Kaori laid down onto the bed and buried her face into the pillow, her tears increasing. She tried to tell herself over and over again how much better she could make her life from now on, but all of her assurances felt hollow to her.

Deep down, Kaori knew the reason why: no matter how much she tried to convince herself otherwise, the fact remained that she still had feelings for Ryo. Feelings that could not be erased just because it would make things easier for her.

Kaori continued to cry and as she did she began to wonder if the tears would ever really stop.

* * *

 

From across the street, the same man from yesterday continued to follow her and when he saw Kaori collapse onto her bed in tears, he started to grin.

_‘Yes, this anger, this conflict…it’s perfect. You will suit my needs perfectly. Just wait, when the time is right, you will find your new purpose with me and my men and our cause.’_

_‘Just a little longer and you will be mine…Sarah.’_

* * *

 

Later that evening, Ryo sat near the window and watched the moon rise in the sky. He had spent the day trying to talk to Rumi, but she continued to avoid anything beyond the most basic of pleasantries. Instead, she puttered around the apartment building, cleaning things and occasionally taking a break to read a magazine or watch television. Ryo even tried his usual mokkori pursuit with her, but Rumi seemed immune both to his efforts and to any sort of irritation at his attempts.

After a few tries, Ryo grew weary of it himself. He couldn’t understand why, but for some reason the thrill of the chase was gone for him. By late afternoon, he ended up taking a nap for a few hours until Rumi came to wake him for supper.

Ryo sat down at the table and noted that Rumi had made tempura.

“What’s the matter Saeba-san?” Rumi asked after several seconds of watching him stare at his plate. “Don’t you like it?”

“Nothing’s wrong,” he insisted with a smile. “Remember, I said that I’m not really picky at all, and this looks really good.”

The two of them then began to eat. As he ate, Ryo admitted to himself that Rumi’s cooking was tasty, but for some reason he couldn’t bring himself to enjoy it.

‘ _What I really wanted was some oden,’_ he thought to himself. ‘ _That’s what I like on a cold night like this. Kaori used made me oden when….’_

Ryo gulped down the food in his mouth, startled by his own thoughts.

‘ _But…Kaori’s not here anymore. She’s not here to make me oden or anything else for that matter. And I will have to get used to that.’_

Ryo continued to eat his food even though he could barely taste it by this point.

* * *

 

After they finished supper, Rumi cleared the table and did the dishes. Once she was done, she yawned and stretched.

“I think I’ll go to bed now,” she said. “Say Saeba-san, where would you like me to sleep tonight?”

“You could always sleep with me,” Ryo grinned at her.

“Don’t be silly,” Rumi said. “We can’t do that sort of thing every night. Besides, I’m too tired for anything other than sleep. Say, where did the woman who used to live here sleep? I could use her bed.”

“No!” Ryo insisted. “You can’t.”

Rumi jumped a little in surprise over his harsh tone, and Ryo was confused by his reaction to her words as well.

“I mean, we have a guest room you can use,” he said, making sure to smile. “You can sleep there tonight.”

“Thank you very much, Saeba-san,” Rumi smiled at him.

Ryo showed her where it was and Rumi wished him good night before going in and shutting the door behind her. For a moment, he thought about trying to peek at her undressing for bed, but found that his heart wasn’t truly into the idea. Instead he ended up going to his room and climbing into bed.

As he rested his head on the pillow, his eyes happened to glance at a framed picture of him and Makimura that was sitting on the stand near his bed.

‘ _I finally kept my promise, Maki-chan. Kaori is going to lead a normal life from now on. You won’t have to worry anymore about anything happening to her because she chose to live in the underground. I’ll make sure of that.’_

Ryo squeezed his eyes shut and started to count his breaths as a way to distract himself to sleep. As he drifted toward unconsciousness, Ryo thought for a second that he could sense someone in the room with him, someone trying to tell him something, but dreams overtook him before he could make any sense out of it.

“ _Ryo…you are making a mistake. Don’t you see that?”_

But by this point, Ryo heard and felt nothing but the dull ache in his heart which continued on for the rest of the night. 

 


	3. Chapter 3

Kouichido Takahara was not a patient man.

He knew that his daughter, Rumi, had run off in search of another man, and Takahara was furious at the way that she continued to defy him.

‘ _Why doesn’t she understand?’_ he asked himself. ‘ _Why doesn’t she understand that I am trying to shield her from the vermin who would use her to get to me? In this world, there are exactly two kinds of men: those who have control and those who want to take that control away.’_

Hours after Rumi had disappeared from their home, Takahara had ordered a couple of his most trusted subordinates to find her and follow her to find out what she was doing. Sure enough, they came back with a report, complete with pictures, of Rumi carousing with a man she met up with in Shinjuku.

Takahara’s face twisted in anger as he studied the pictures. He could tell by looking that the man with Rumi was yet another parasite who was looking for some way to use Rumi toward his own ends.

‘ _I need to make an example of this man. Both to my daughter and to everyone else who would try to take advantage of her. Those men will learn what happens when you cross the Minister of Defense.’_

Takahara had had to call in a couple of favors from some less reputable members of the Diet, but eventually he was able to arrange a meeting with a man who was said to be one of the foremost underground professionals in Japan. The man was scheduled to arrive within a few minutes, and Takahara decided to pour himself a glass of bourbon as a way to calm his temper and to prepare for the meeting.

Seconds after finishing his drink, an imposing figure walked into Takahara’s office. Even though his eyes were hidden behind sunglasses, Takahara could sense the seriousness and power behind the man’s gaze.

“I hear that you want to hire me for a job,” Umibozu said.

“Yes,” Takahara replied. “My daughter has gotten herself involved with a piece of trash, and I will need you to take care of the problem….”

* * *

 

The next morning Kaori returned to the rooftop of the building across from Ryo’s apartment complex. She had spent the previous night telling herself that she was going to start making plans to move out and begin a new life, but instead she had found herself drawn to the same spot she had used to spy on Ryo yesterday.

Kaori watched as Rumi served Ryo another breakfast and gritted her teeth when she saw the smile on his face while he ate.

‘ _He never smiles like that when I make him breakfast…or any other meal for that matter. Is her food that much more wonderful than mine? Or maybe it’s just because she’s the one making it for him.’_

Kaori sat down on the roof and pulled out a hamburger from a giant bag of food that she had brought with her. She hadn’t eaten anything the day before and thus she was ravenous. She had stopped by a local fast food restaurant and had ordered just about everything on the menu.

‘ _Ryo is an idiot,’_ she fumed while she ate. ‘ _What does he like about that girl?’_

Kaori stuffed the rest of the hamburger into her mouth and swallowed it with one gulp. After spending an entire night in tears, her anger had overtaken her sorrow and watching Ryo interact with Rumi only made it worse.

‘ _I’m sure Ryo would give a whole list of reasons why he likes her: she’s cute, she’s a better cook than me, she doesn’t hit him with a hammer.’_

_‘But then he’ll do something stupid and she’ll get mad at him. Then he’ll just run off to the next girl. That’s exactly what he’ll do. Just keep chasing one girl after another and then running away after he’s done with them. He’ll never actually love any of them. It’s not his “style”.’_

_‘He’ll suffer for the rest of his life.’_

Kaori clenched her hands and sighed. As mad as she was at him, the thought of Ryo suffering that way made her heart ache. She had seen firsthand how much he enjoyed the company of women, but she had also wondered why he hadn’t tried harder to stay with any of the women he met. Kaori knew that she had played a hand in Ryo’s reluctance to seriously pursue any one woman with her hammers and the jealousy behind them, but then she contemplated how she had seen more than one woman fall in love with him…and how he always ran from the opportunity to find happiness with her.

‘ _Why does he do that? Why won’t he accept any of the offers he gets from these women? He could be happy, really happy, instead of just spending his life on a continuous mokkori hunt. But instead he chooses to be such an idiot.’_

Kaori felt tears well up in her eyes. Truthfully, she had been afraid of the moment when Ryo finally fell in love with a woman, the moment when his heart was finally claimed by someone else, for a long time. She knew that that moment would mean the end of their partnership, even if he offered to let her continue to work with him in City Hunter. Even though she always made him pay for his mokkori pursuits with their clients and random women on the street, Kaori was not so certain that she could bring herself to stand in the way if Ryo actually fell in love with someone, despite her own feelings for him.

Kaori peered through her binoculars again and watched as Ryo started to chase Rumi around while she did the chores. A fresh surge of rage coursed through her. She had thought about confronting Ryo about the situation when she returned to the apartment to get her things, but by this point, her anger, sorrow and frustration were making it impossible for her to maintain any sort of patience.

“No, I can’t wait!” she yelled to no one in particular. “I’m going to make him pay for this right now!”

Kaori was so caught up in her rage; she didn’t notice a man sneaking up behind her.

* * *

 

A man in dark clothes and sunglasses slowly approached Kaori, a smile on his face. Once he was in position, he pulled a syringe out of his pocket.

“No I can’t wait…I’m going to make him pay for this right now!”

‘ _Oh you will make him pay, Sarah,’_ the man thought to himself. ‘ _You will make him pay, you will make that woman pay…and you will make anyone who stands in the path of the Black Army pay.’_

The man leapt down for the attack, grabbing one of Kaori’s arms and twisting it behind her back.

“Hey, what are you doing?” she yelled. “Stop it.”

Kaori fought hard, but the man had surprise on his side. He quickly plunged the needle into her neck and then dropped the syringe so he could hold onto her other arm. Within seconds, she stopped struggling, and the man scooped her up and threw her over his shoulder.

‘ _You’re mine now, Sarah. From this point on, you live to serve the Black Army. To serve me…and no one else.’_

* * *

 

Hours later, the sun started to set again and Ryo was standing on the roof, smoking a cigarette.

He had half-expected Kaori to show up at some point today to get her things or to yell at him at the very least, but she never came.

‘ _She must be really angry at me this time,’_ he told himself. ‘ _I suppose I shouldn’t be too surprised, given what happened. I wonder where she is.’_

Ryo exhaled some rings of smoke and watched them drift toward the setting sun. He had spent most of the afternoon wondering if he should go and look for her, but in the end he decided against it.

‘ _She probably went to visit some of her high-school friends or maybe even Miki-chan. I’d probably better steer clear of the Cat’s Eye for now, just in case. She probably doesn’t want to see me, and Miki-chan can be scary when she is mad too.’_

_‘At any rate though, she’ll be back at some point. She needs to get the rest of her things…she even forgot the ring Makimura gave her. There is no way she would leave that behind.’_

Ryo ground the rest of his cigarette under his foot and leaned onto the railing. Rumi continued to be evasive as to her motives for staying with him and had busied herself with cooking elaborate meals for the rest of the day. Ryo watched her cook for a while before slinking off to the front room to immerse himself in some mokkori magazines for a while. Even that though, did not hold the same allure that it used to and he spent most of the day feeling bored and listless.

‘ _I wish Rumi-chan would tell me what she is doing here. At least then I could figure out what I should do next. Then after her problem is solved I can go out and have some fun.’_

Ryo studied the neon signs off in the distance, the flickering lights reflecting in his eyes.

‘ _That’s right. I can go out to the bars and cabarets and not worry about how late I stay out or what I end up doing. I can get as drunk as I want, party as much as I want and have as much mokkori as I want and it won’t matter because no one will be there to punish me when I get home.’_

_‘Because no one will care about what I do.’_

_‘Because no one will care about what happens to me.’_

Suddenly, Ryo heard footsteps approach him and he spotted the familiar color and fabric of one of Kaori’s favorite sweaters out of the corner of his eye. His mouth started to form a grin, and his eyes lit up with excitement.

“Kaori!” he said as he whirled around. Instead of Kaori standing behind him, however, Rumi was there, her hand to her mouth and a blush lighting up her cheeks.

“Ah no, Saeba-san, it’s me Rumi,” she said. “I’m sorry, but I needed to wash my clothes, so I borrowed and outfit from the room downstairs. I hope it is ok.” The light that had flashed in Ryo’s eyes immediately dimmed, but he did his best to remain congenial.

“It’s all right,” Ryo smiled at her. “I am sure Kaori would understand. Is there anything else you need, Rumi-chan?”

“No, I’m good,” she smiled at him. “I was thinking of watching TV for a while and then going to bed.”

“Rumi-chan,” Ryo said. “I noticed that you made a phone call earlier today…and it looked like you didn’t want me to see you do it. Is there something I should know?”

“Oh, that, that was no big deal,” Rumi laughed. “Just letting a friend know what I was doing.”

“Rumi-chan,” Ryo said, taking a step toward her. “Isn’t it about time that you told me the truth about what is going on?”

“I don’t know what you mean, Saeba-san,” she replied. “You said that you wanted me to stay with you forever. Did you change your mind about that?”

 “You can stay,” Ryo said. “But I do ask that you tell me the truth. Is there some reason why you continue to stay here? Is there something or someone you are afraid of? Because if there is, I can help you.”

“I…I….”

Rumi acted as if she wanted to say more, but ended up looking away from Ryo and staring at the ground. After a moment of silence, she looked back up at him, a smile back on her face.

“Say, Saeba-san, I would like to go out tomorrow,” she said. “Could we go somewhere together? I promise, I will talk to you some more then, ok?”

“All right,” he said with a smile. “Let’s have some fun tomorrow and then we will figure things out.”

“Thank you,” Rumi said. “For everything.”

Rumi gave him one last warm smile before heading back inside. Ryo turned back toward the sunset and leaned against the railing again, placing his chin onto one of his hands.

‘ _After this is all over with Rumi-chan, I will settle things with Kaori…if she will let me. If not, it’s ok. Either way, it’s the start of a new life for her and a return to my old life for me.’_

_'My old life….’_

Ryo ended up staying on the roof well after the sun had set and the moon rose into the sky. At one point, he could have sworn that he felt a hand clasp his shoulder, a gesture that reminded him of Makimura, but Ryo chalked it up to wishful thinking.

He was alone on the roof, the silence his only companion, the shadows his only audience.

* * *

 

Kaori opened her eyes, but things were no clearer this time then they were the last time she had opened them.

She was still lying on the floor in the middle of a white room; with no memory of how she got there or how long she had been there. The only things she could fully grasp were the nausea and disorientation she felt and the sound that filled the room, a droning continuous stream of white noise.

‘ _Where…where am I? What am I doing here? What is happening to me?’_

_‘Ryo…Where’s Ryo?’_

“Sarah,” a voice said over the white noise. Kaori tried to sit up, but was too dizzy to stay upright for more than a few seconds.

“No…I’m not Sarah,” she croaked. “I’m Kaori, Kaori Makimura.”

“It’s all right, Sarah,” the voice continued. “You’re just confused right now. We are here to help you, Sarah. We are here to help you remember who you are.”

“No, no you’re wrong,” Kaori slurred out, her eyes becoming unfocused. “I’m not Sarah. I…I’m…I’m….”

Kaori tried to speak, but a sickly sweet odor filled the room, and she felt too sleepy to do anything more than fall back down onto the floor. Seconds later, she felt hands reach for her arm and the sting of a needle breaking her skin.

“Sarah, you will remember who you are in due time. You will remember your place in the Black Army and the mission you must carry out. Do not concern yourself with anything else. Just relax and concentrate on the things I tell you.”

Kaori opened her mouth to speak, but the words froze in her throat, and soon they slipped away entirely. She felt herself fall into the darkness.

She then began to dream.

* * *

 

_She dreamed of a man standing in front of her. A man she felt as if she had known her entire life._

_“Are you thinking about your brother again?”_

_The man had a playful smile on his face, but his eyes shone with concern._

_“Today is…today would have been aniki’s birthday. I…I was actually thinking about getting him a gift, but then I remembered. I can’t believe I did that. I can’t believe that I forgot…that I forgot that he’s….”_

_She felt tears spring to her eyes. A wound was re-opening and she was sure she would drown in her sorrow and shame._

_But then the man approached her and placed a hand on her shoulder._

_“I don’t think you actually forgot about his death. I think you were just distracted because you know that he is still with you.”_

_“Still with me?”_

_The man reached over and tapped her chest over her heart with his index finger before pointing toward his own heart._

_“He is still with us here. And that’s why we are never far away from him…and why you still think about things like his birthday.”_

_The man then leaned against the wall and smiled at her again._

_“How about we go ahead and buy that present anyway. It’s about time we pay him another visit, don’t you think?”_

_Her lips parted into a smile, warmth filling her heart._

_“Thank you, Ryo…”_

* * *

 

Almost as quickly as she saw the images in her mind, Kaori watched her them fade away into nothingness with only white noise remaining.

‘ _Ryo? Was…was that a dream? A memory?’_

“Sarah, forget about that man,” the voice inside her head droned on. “That man is your enemy. He is the enemy of the Black Army. You must remember your mission. You must eliminate anyone who stands in your way.”

“Sarah, that man causes you pain. You will make him pay for the misery he caused you. You will make him suffer.”

‘ _Suffer? Isn’t that what I wanted? To make him pay?’_

 A flood a new feelings and impressions suddenly filled her: the shameful feeling of being mocked, the stifling feeling of frustration, and the painful feelings of loneliness, jealousy and anger.

“Yes, Sarah, that man will pay. You will be the one who makes him pay for everything he has done.”

Kaori vomited onto the floor and once she was done, she turned her body away and curled up into a fetal position while a white fog enveloped her mind again.

‘ _Where am I? What is going on? Who is Sarah?’_

_‘Is she…me…or am I still Kaori?’_

Kaori tried to grab onto that last question, determined to hold onto the truth, but by this point, the truth felt like a vague, fleeting concept that could never really be known.

 


	4. Chapter 4

“What is your name?”

Kaori blinked her eyes open and tried to make sense of her surroundings. She was still in a white room with no notion of how much more time had passed. She tried to lift her head, but a flash of pain erupted near her temples, blinding her.

“What is your name?”

Kaori pushed past the pain and managed to move into a sitting position on the floor. Her head swam and she put a hand to her face in an effort to steady herself. The nausea was gone, but in its place was confusion combined with a growing physical numbness.

“What is your name?”

Kaori wished she could answer, if only to stop the voice from pounding in her brain. The white noise continued to drone on in the background. She rubbed her temples and wondered if silence was an illusion with the noise being the natural state of things.

“I…I…” she mumbled.

“Your name?”

Kaori licked her lips. She was thirsty, and she opened her mouth to ask for some water, but could not find the words to formulate her request. She tried to stand up so she could look for something to drink, and immediately stumbled back onto the floor.

“Your name?”

It was a simple request, but Kaori found that the more she tried to reach for an answer, the more elusive it became. Concepts like her name, time and memories had become meaningless and impossible to completely discern.

“I…I don’t know,” she finally whispered.

A door opened and Kaori put a hand near her eyes, wincing at the burst of light coming from outside the door. There was a man in the doorway, and Kaori watched silently as he walked over to her and crouched down beside her.

“Don’t you remember?” he said with a smile. “Your name is Sarah. You are a leader within the Black Army.”

“Sarah?” Kaori said, confused. The man reached over and stroked her cheek.

“Yes, Sarah,” he continued. “You know me as General. There was an accident on your last mission, an accident that made you lose your memory. You were held captive for a time, but we were able to rescue you. You will be better very soon. We will help you remember your place here, your purpose.”

“My place?” she echoed. The man calling himself General stood up and held a hand out to her.

“Come,” he said. “I will take you to a place where you can rest and change. Then I will help you remember.”

Kaori stared at the man for a long minute before finally holding out a trembling hand toward him.

“Thank…you…” she replied.

* * *

 

An hour later, Kaori was sitting on a bed trying to keep her eyes open. General had given her some new clothes to wear, and she changed into them as fast as she could in her disoriented state. He then gave her some food and water along with another injection of some sort of “medicine” into her arm. Kaori did not enjoy the resulting dizziness she felt as the drug took effect, but was relieved to discover that the effects were not as strong this time. Instead of passing out or vomiting she simply felt numb and empty.

General walked back into the room with a box in his hands and Kaori lifted her head to look at him.

“Ah, very good,” he smiled. “You’re beautiful, Sarah. Now, just one last thing.”

General pulled a wig out of the box and handed it to Kaori.

“Put this on,” he said. “The man who held you captive forced you to cut and color your hair. This will restore you to how you were before.”

“I…I was a prisoner?” Kaori said as she took the wig and put it on her head.

“Yes, Sarah,” he nodded. “You were in the clutches of an evil man. A man who took pleasure out of mocking you, belittling you, and treating you like you are nothing. He enjoyed turning a strong, beautiful woman like you into his servant. He is a womanizer, a pervert and a killer. He is your enemy Sarah. He would not think twice about hurting you or even killing you if you were to let him.”

Kaori gasped, her heart pounding faster in her chest. She was vaguely aware that she had been afraid for some time and now she was sure that she knew the reason why. Her fear quickly turned to anger, however, as she fixated on how she had been treated.

“This man, who is he?” she asked. “What is his name?”

“You already know him, Sarah,” General said. “He is the man you keep seeing in your mind. The man who continues to invade your thoughts.”

General put his hands on Kaori’s shoulders and turned her toward a mirror so she could look at her new appearance.

“But you will have your revenge, Sarah,” he said. “Just a little longer and then you will reclaim your rightful place within the Black Army and there you will have a chance to get back at this man. I promise you that.”

General stood behind her and put one arm around her waist and reach over to caress her face with his other hand.

“You just need to listen to me from now on, Sarah,” he said as his fingers stroked her cheeks. “Just listen to me and everything will be fine.”

He continued to touch her, and Kaori could not understand why she felt tears fill her eyes.

‘ _No…no this isn’t what I want. I…I don’t want you touching me. I don’t want your hands on me.’_

Kaori shuddered as cold, clammy hands touched her and General pulled her close to him.  She closed her eyes and found herself longing for a man who appeared only as a shadow in her mind. She hungered for the familiar feel of his hands, hands that were strong yet gentle. She imagined being in this man’s arms and feeling warm and protected. Kaori tried to make out the face of the man who filled her thoughts and made her heart stir, but could perceive nothing but a blur.

“Sarah? Answer me, Sarah.”

Kaori re-opened her eyes and the man from her dreams vanished. In his place this man, General, the one who called her Sarah. He was standing in front of her now, holding out a pair of earrings and a small contact lens case.

‘ _What was that feeling? That feeling of belonging? Why do I feel that whenever I imagine that man?’_ Kaori asked herself. Her head throbbed and she shook herself.

‘ _No, it was nothing. It was just a dream. I…I am Sarah. I have a mission. I have no need for stupid dreams.’_  

“This will be the last step, Sarah,” General said. “Put these on and then we shall complete your preparations for your latest mission. Your first task will be to help us kill a woman and a man.”

“The man who held me captive?” Kaori said, rage pouring into her from an unknown place.

“Yes,” General answered. “You shall have your chance at revenge.”

“What is his name?” Kaori said, her tone becoming increasingly cold. The man grinned in response.

“Ryo Saeba.”

* * *

 

Ryo snuck up behind Rumi as she did some cleaning around the apartment. He was grateful for the way Rumi continued to cook and clean for him, but had grown weary with the way that she continued to evade his questions. He had also begun to consider the possibility that her story about the two of them spending an intimate night together and his asking her to stay with him was all a ruse.

‘ _If we really spent the night together, she shouldn’t mind a little mokkori action from me now,’_ Ryo told himself. ‘ _Let’s just see how she reacts.’_

Ryo tried various types of mokkori tactics, but was dismayed when every single one of his attempts failed in execution. In a last ditch effort, he had tried jumping on her from behind and ended up face first in a bucket of water instead.

‘ _What is wrong with me? Normally, it’s not this difficult for me to sneak in some mokkori. It’s like I’m off balance somehow.’_

Ryo’s thoughts were interrupted as Rumi tried to wipe the water off his face.

“Hurry up and wipe it off,” she said. “Or you’re going to catch a cold.”

Ryo leaned toward her hand as she brushed the water off of him, a smile on his face. Rumi’s gesture reminded him of a night when he had come home late at night, soaked from the rain which was pouring down in frigid sheets. Kaori had greeted him at the door with a towel in her hands and had helped him out of his wet coat while trying her best to dry him off.

“ _Ryo what were you thinking? Staying out in the rain like that? You are hopeless. Hurry up and change or you’ll get a cold.’_

If he kept his eyes closed, Ryo could continue to re-live the memory of Kaori rubbing his face and hair with a towel and of her draping a warm blanket over his shoulders after he had changed. But he knew that dwelling on such memories was useless in light of his current situation. He decided to focus instead on the task at hand.

“You did enough cleaning,” he told Rumi. “Let’s hurry up and have some fun together.”

Ryo grinned at her and was pleased to see her smile in response.

“I guess so,” she said. “The woman who lived here before cleaned regularly, so the place is very clean.”

“Kaori did? Really?” he replied.

“Yes,” Rumi nodded. “To be honest, there really was little need for me to do so many chores. It was just an excuse to keep busy. That woman…she must have put her heart into taking care of this place.”

Rumi walked out of the room to put away the apron she was wearing and Ryo paced. He started touching the furniture and shelves as he studied his surroundings. He understood what Rumi had told him about the house because he had known for a while that taking care of the apartment building was not just an exercise in drudgery for Kaori. She took pride in her duties within their partnership whether it was finding and negotiating with clients or taking care of domestic affairs like the cooking and cleaning.

Ryo rubbed a finger along a shelf and examined it to see that not a speck of dust had clung to it. He wondered how Kaori could find so much satisfaction over something like household chores, but then it occurring to him that it wasn’t the building itself that she had been so concerned about: it was him. She hadn’t been just taking care of their living space; she had been taking care of his home, their home.

Kaori had been taking care of him.

“Well, let’s have fun,” Rumi said as she came up behind him. Ryo shook himself out of his reverie and started to grin. At first, he figured that she might have meant that she wanted some mokkori fun and was looking forward to a way to get his mind off his troubles. But then Rumi explained that she wanted to go to an amusement park instead.

‘ _Did I really promise to take Rumi to an amusement park?’_ he wondered. ‘ _I know that I was pretty drunk that night, but I am sure that that was not what I had in mind.’_

Ryo sighed and nodded his head before accompanying her to his car. He remembered her promise to tell him more about what was going on, and he hoped that she hadn’t forgotten it.

* * *

 

In the middle of downtown Tokyo, Umibozu took position on a roof top overlooking the highway. He knew that Ryo would eventually leave his apartment building and thus, Umibozu had chosen a spot that served as a crossroads between several likely destinations that Ryo could go to. Umibozu examined the bazooka he had carried to the roof while Miki alternated between checking their ammo and looking for Ryo’s car through her binoculars.

When Takahara had approached him about finding his daughter and killing Ryo, Umibozu had told him that he would think about it. In the back of his mind, he had planned on turning down Takahara’s request or asking him to narrow it to just finding his daughter. A conversation he had had with Miki, however, had made him re-think things.

* * *

 

_Umibozu had returned from his meeting with Takahara to the Cat’s Eye café to find Miki waiting for him behind the counter. He told her about Takahara’s request and had expected Miki to protest his taking the job immediately. Instead she stared at him with a thoughtful look in her eye._

_“Falcon, I haven’t seen Kaori-san for a couple of days,” she said. “I talked to Saeko-san and Reika-san and they said that they hadn’t heard from her either.”_

_“Really? That is unusual,” Umibozu nodded. Normally, Kaori stopped in every other day at the café, if not even more often to visit with the two of them._

_“You mentioned that this Takahara has seen Saeba-san with his daughter, Rumi,” Miki said. “And that supposedly she is staying at Saeba-san’s apartment building. Do you…do you think that she is the reason why Kaori-san has disappeared?”_

_Umibozu raised an eyebrow and let out a sigh. He had seen firsthand how obsessed Ryo was with pursuing all sorts of women and he had also seen how angry and jealous Kaori could get as a result._

_“Something must have happened between Saeba-san and Kaori-san because of this woman,” Miki said. “Something that made Kaori-san run away from him and hide. I bet that Saeba-san did something that really hurt her feelings.”_

_“It wouldn’t surprise me,” Umibozu grunted. “That idiot is always doing something stupid.”_

_“Falcon, I think it’s time that we teach Saeba-san a lesson,” Miki said, a glint of anger in her eyes even as she smiled at him._

_“What did you have in mind?” Umibozu said, a smile of his own appearing on his face._

_“Go ahead and accept Takahara-san’s request,” Miki said. “That will give us a perfect opportunity.”_

* * *

 

That led to where Umibozu was now, staring down at the highway with a bazooka in his hands.  He was aware that this was a somewhat extreme tactic, but he was also confident that Ryo would not be so inept as to let an attack like this kill him or the girl. This would mainly serve as a warning to Ryo that he was on his trail.

Umibozu took aim right behind Ryo’s car and fired. As expected, Ryo expertly dodged the missive. Miki loaded another round into the bazooka and he fired again just to the side of the Mini-Cooper.

“Falcon, are you sure that Takahara’s daughter will be all right?” Miki asked.

“Don’t worry about her,” Umibozu snapped. “I am a professional. Besides, we both know that Ryo can handle something like this easily.”

Miki nodded and went back to watching the road while Umibozu fired. He watched as Ryo continued to weave around the road and then stopped when the car disappeared under an overpass.

“He entered our blind spot,” Miki said with more than a trace of disappointment in her voice.

“What a quick getaway he made,” Umibozu replied. The both of them knew that there wasn’t anything more that they could do here, and thus, the two of them decided to try to find and follow Ryo on the road. As Miki packed up their things, Umibozu looked back at the streets below.

‘ _Anyway, why was the van following him?’_ he wondered. Umibozu suspected that there was more going on than Takahara had implied. Still, he knew that it was no good wasting time speculating. He figured that the best way to find out more was to go through with his job and track Ryo and the girl down.

Until he could confront them, Umibozu would remain on the hunt.

* * *

 

Ryo continued to speed down the road even though he was confident that he had lost whoever was firing at them. Meanwhile Rumi sobbed loudly into her hands.

“It has to be a threat from my dad,” she cried. “He’s doing it because he wants to separate us and wants me to go back to him.”

Ryo shook his head. Rumi was clearly hysterical to come up with a theory like that, and he wondered if he should take her back to his place. He tried to assure her that there was no way that her father would use a bazooka against her, but Rumi’s tears only increased in their intensity.

“My dad can do things like that,” she gasped. “What he does is usually pretty extreme.” Ryo’s eyes widened in surprise as he realized that Rumi was completely serious.

‘ _What kind of father would use a bazooka against his own daughter?’_ Ryo wondered, incredulous. ‘ _Does her father belong to some drug syndicate or yakuza group?’_

“Who the hell is your father?” he asked. Rumi paused for a second before finally stopping her tears long enough to tell him.

“Kouichiro Takahara,” she said. “In the Cabinet.” Ryo was unable to hide his surprise.

“What!?” he nearly yelled. “You mean the Minister of Defense?!”

Rumi continued to sob and beg him to protect her. Ryo let out a sigh as he tried to recover from the shock.

‘ _It’s even worse than I thought…The Minister of Defense? Just what in the world did I step into?’_

Ryo reassured Rumi that he would protect her, and she finally started to calm down. He decided to go ahead with their trip to the amusement park and hoped that whatever Rumi eventually told him would be enough to make some sense out of the bizarre situation the two of them were in.

* * *

 

Saeko Nogami sat behind her desk, her face drawn into a pensive mask. An hour previous, she had been in a meeting with the chief of police and the Minster of Defense, Kouichiro Takahara about the ransom the government had received from the Black Army.

The chief had tried to assure Takahara that they would do everything in their power, but Saeko knew that it would not be so easy.

‘ _Even though members of the Black Army were spotted within Japan we have no idea of their movements since entering Tokyo,’_ she mused. ‘ _The police can only do so much in searching for them. We need the help of people who can find information that the police cannot.’_

She picked up the phone and called both Ryo’s place and the Cat’s Eye café. She was frustrated when she didn’t get an answer either time and tried to call her sister, Reika next, but had no luck there as well.

Saeko pushed her chair away from her desk and walked out of the squad room. She left instructions with one of her men to keep her posted on any developments before walking out of the building toward her Ferrari.

She was determined to find either Ryo or Umibozu as soon as possible, a part of her certain that she actually needed both of them in order to have any sort of chance against the Black Army.

* * *

 

Kaori carefully weaved her way through the crowds at the amusement park. General had informed her that her targets were currently where someone in this place and she was single-minded in her search.

“ _These are your targets, Sarah,”_ he had told her while showing her a pair of pictures. “ _Make sure to kill them both and to not get caught. We will be waiting at the edge of the park for you to complete your mission.”_

General had then given her a derringer and sent her off on her way. Kaori scanned the park for couples, figuring that one of set of them would contain the people she was looking for.

As she looked around at the crowds, Kaori felt rage continuing to build inside her. She noted how happy most of the men and women looked together, and her heart was filled with jealousy and regret.

‘ _No man ever took me to a place like this,’_ she told herself. ‘ _No man has ever tried to make me as happy as these women are.’_

_‘Especially not….’_

Kaori tightened her jaw and walked even faster. She soon spotted a couple standing near a shooting game and looked closer to see the woman she was looking for smiling at the man beside her.

‘ _So…she will be first then,’_ Kaori thought to herself as she narrowed her eyes at the woman. ‘ _That is better anyway. Rumi Takahara will die quickly._

_‘But he…he will not be so lucky. I want to see the look in his eyes when I kill him.’_

* * *

 

Ryo continued to aim his toy rifle at the figures in the game, expertly shooting each one. By this point, Rumi had finally calmed down completely, and he hoped that she would open up soon about why she had sought him out.

“Incredible!” Rumi exclaimed. Ryo smiled at her.

“I’m a professional,” he replied. He was then shocked to discover that Rumi seemed to have no idea what he was talking about.

“You approached me because you knew who I was, didn’t you?” he asked, incredulous. Rumi continued to assert her ignorance, and Ryo’s surprise grew.

‘ _So…is this just about her trying to get away from her father?’_ he wondered. ‘ _Is it possible that she simply fell in love with me and hopes that I will protect her from him?’_

Still unsure of Rumi’s intentions, Ryo decided to play a hunch.

“Well then, you really love me, don’t you?” he said, leaning close to her.

“Well I guess,” she stuttered out, her face growing red.

Ryo was about to say more, but was startled to hear the sound of a hammer being pulled back on a gun. He then knew that he had to act quickly.

“Good!” he exclaimed. “Then let’s kiss.” Ryo grabbed her and pulled her close to him. Rumi struggled, but Ryo was able to yank her away from harm just as he heard a gun being fired. Ryo could feel the bullet narrowly miss Rumi and was ready to throw her to the ground in case of more gunfire.

He hadn’t been prepared, however, for the ferocity of Rumi’s response and Ryo flinched as she raked her nails over his face.

“No! Stop!” she yelled as she scratched at him. Ryo grabbed her wrists and held her away from him. It was then that Rumi confessed that she had lied about the two of them spending the night together, and Ryo found that he wasn’t the least bit surprised at her confession.

“I’m so sorry,” she said.

Ryo lowered his eyes for a moment, but quickly tensed back up. He could still sense murderous intent coming from somewhere nearby and he knew that he needed to get Rumi to a safe place.

“It’s ok,” he told her. “Anyway, come this way.”

Ryo grabbed her hand and pulled her alongside him while they ran. He found an empty Ferris wheel with no operator around and decided that it would be a good place for her to hide.

“Listen, duck in here,” he told Rumi as she climbed into one of the compartments. Rumi tried to ask him what was going on, but another gunshot was enough to silence her. Ryo turned toward the source of the shot and saw a woman run away into the crowd.

Ryo chased her. The woman was fast and agile, and Ryo was forced to speed up his pace. He saw her dash away from the crowds and adjusted his course to follow her. He lost sight of her, however, as she made her way out of the throngs of people.

Ryo continued to run in the direction she had headed for, his senses on the alert for any sign of her presence. A sharp glimmer of light caught his attention and he darted backward to dodge a knife that appeared in the hands of the woman he had been chasing. The woman tried again and again to stab him, but Ryo managed to evade her attempts with a series of fluid movements. Eventually he grabbed her wrist and pushed her against a wall. As he did so, her sunglasses fell off her face, and Ryo was able to stare into her eyes.

The hair and eye color were different, and the makeup and attire were out of place for her, but in Ryo’s mind, there was no mistaking the woman in front of him.

‘ _Kaori?’_


	5. Chapter 5

Initially, Kaori tried to escape the firm hold Ryo had on her, but she suddenly stopped when he stared into her eyes and her heart began to pound.

‘ _What is this that I am feeling?’_ she wondered. ‘ _Why can’t I move when he looks at me that way?’_

Kaori’s heart continued to beat faster and started to ache. She was about to say something when faint memories of her time spent with Ryo came to her.

_“You claim that you’re a woman…”_

_“You’re the only woman who doesn’t make me feel mokkori….”_

_“If any girls start making passes at you, could you spare me one….”_

Kaori smirked, desperate to hide her inner turmoil. Those thoughts, those words from him helped her to regain her focus. This was the man who had held her captive and who had done and said cruel things to her. She was determined not to show even a second of weakness to him.

* * *

 

Ryo continued to stare into cold, blue eyes. The way she had welded the knife had convinced Ryo that Kaori was trying to hurt him, but the look in her eyes could only be called conflicted.

‘ _Why is she dressed this way?’_ he asked himself. ‘ _It’s as if she’s someone else. Someone who doesn’t know who I am…No, that’s not quite right. She does know me, but it’s as if….’_

“You love me so much you want to kill me, don’t you?” he asked her.

Ryo wasn’t entire sure where those words had come from, but they felt entirely natural as he said them. He could still sense the strong feelings that Kaori had for him in her eyes, but those feelings had changed into something else, something far more menacing.

“My love is extreme,” she said, with a hint of a smile.

Ryo smiled back. He couldn’t deny the truth in her statement. Whether it was one of her moments of tenderness when she nurtured him or her moments of fury when she hit him with a hammer, Kaori’s love was far from quiet or reserved.

Ryo continued to smile even as his confusion grew. The longer he was with her, the less he could sense the person he knew as Kaori, and it disturbed him. He was about to ask her what was going on, but his words were interrupted by the sight of the skirt of Kaori’s dress sliding down and revealing her legs.

* * *

 

Kaori wanted to get away. The longer Ryo held her in place and looked into her eyes, the more the turmoil inside of her grew. Her mind was filled with a jumbled mess of thoughts and feelings, and she could not focus on any of them long enough to discern its meaning.

‘ _I have to escape. General is waiting for me. I have to get away from this man.’_

Kaori lifted one of her legs, readying herself to kick him and watched as Ryo’s expression changed from thoughtful to lecherous.

“I love extreme things like this,” he smiled as he let her go and crouched down beside her.

Kaori narrowed her eyes, a fresh surge of anger filling her.

‘ _It’s just like General said. He is a womanizer and a pervert. Now that I am no longer his captive, he ogles me like every other woman.’_

_‘He is my enemy.’_

Kaori smashed her knee into his chin. She hated how this man made her feel and she was determined to make him suffer for it.

_‘He will suffer for the rest of his life. I will make sure of it.’_

* * *

 

Ryo fell back as Kaori’s knee hit him. He then watched in stunned silence as she spun around to kick him. As she did, he caught a flash of the panties she was wearing and the cute panda that was printed on them.

Ryo smiled for the briefest of seconds before he felt Kaori’s heel hit him in the face. If there was any doubt before about her identity, it was erased in that moment.

‘ _Kaori is the only woman I know who wears underwear like that. I knew I should have stolen that one when I had the chance last week.’_

He then saw her turn to run and held out a hand to stop her.

“Wait!” he yelled. But Kaori didn’t seem to hear him and continued to run.

‘ _Don’t go, Kaori,’_ he called out in his mind. ‘ _Tell me what’s happened to you.’_

Ryo was about to run after her when he heard Rumi cry for help. He glanced back at Kaori’s retreating figure and clenched his hands. Every fiber of his being screamed at him to go after his partner, but he also knew that Rumi would not be able to handle the people who were after her.

‘ _Besides, Kaori shot at Rumi. Whatever has happened to her is somehow related to the people who are after Rumi. And right now, there is no way that Kaori will listen to anything I tell her.’_

It had been one of the hardest decisions he had had to make in a long time, but Ryo ran toward the sound of Rumi’s screams and away from the path Kaori had taken.

* * *

 

Umibozu and Miki ran along, Umibozu carrying Rumi with one arm. They were somewhat surprised at how negatively Rumi had reacted at the prospect of seeing her father, but they were still determined to get her away from Ryo at the very least.

It wasn’t long, however, before Ryo caught up with them, insisting that they let Rumi go. Miki turned toward him, her demeanor cool and dismissive.

“Her father asked us to protect his daughter from a beast,” she replied to his demands.

Miki was not surprised though when Ryo not only bristled at being called a beast, but ended up referring to Umibozu that way. She decided that it was useless to reason with Ryo and decided to turn her attention to Rumi.

“Rumi-chan,” she said. “He’s very dangerous for women and we can’t trust him.”

“Hey! I haven’t done anything to her yet!”

Miki frowned and glared at him. She was certain that Rumi had something to do with Kaori’s disappearance and was angry that Ryo continued to carry on with his antics without caring in the slightest about how Kaori could be feeling. Thus, she was glad when Umibozu pointed his gun at Ryo and announced the request he had received to kill Ryo. Her anger lessened slightly though as Ryo explained that Rumi was in real danger.

“Somebody is trying to get her,” Ryo said.

Miki narrowed her eyes, but then thought back to earlier when the van was following Ryo’s car.

‘ _No matter what, he wouldn’t lie about Rumi being in trouble,’_ she thought to herself. ‘ _And it does make sense considering what happened earlier. Her father is an important man. It’s not outside the realm of possibility that someone could be after her as a way to get to him.’_

“All right, Saeba-san,” Miki said. “Supposing what you say is true…do you have any idea who might be after Rumi-chan?”

“No,” Ryo replied. “Perhaps the best person to ask would be her father. He would probably know about any enemies who would use tactics like this against him.”

“Fine,” Umibozu said. “But for now, I am staying with her. I am not leaving her alone with you.”

“Fine,” Ryo pouted. “Let’s head back to my place and see if we can’t figure out what we can do next. In the meantime, how about Miki-chan go meet with her father?”

Both Umibozu and Miki nodded, and Umibozu put Rumi back down onto her feet. The four of them then walked toward the parking lot, and Miki reluctantly agreed with Ryo to allow Rumi to ride with him back to his apartment building.

“Do you think that Saeba-san was telling us the truth?” Miki asked as Umibozu drove his jeep close behind Ryo’s car. “About someone else being after Rumi?”

“Despite being a useless pervert, Ryo is still a professional,” Umibozu said. “I agree with his assessment. It explains the van we saw earlier. Still….”

“What is it, Falcon?”

“I don’t understand why Ryo was so careless,” he replied. “He says that he is trying to protect that girl, and yet he left her in a place where we could easily get to her, and he left her alone for a long time. It’s as if something has him distracted.”

“Distracted by Rumi, perhaps,” Miki said with a huff.

“No,” Umibozu said. “A professional like him does not make a mistake like that, not without some other ulterior motive. But this time, there was no reason, no strategic benefit to what he did. Something else is going on here…something that he is not telling us.”

Miki looked over at Umibozu one more time before turning her attention to the car in front of them. Now that she had time to reflect on it, she remembered Ryo having a pensive expression on his face during the walk toward the parking lot. She wondered what exactly was going through Ryo’s mind at this moment.

‘ _Maybe he is thinking about Kaori-san,’_ she pondered. ‘ _But…if this girl is just a client to Saeba-san, then why isn’t Kaori-san involved with this case? What made her leave Saeba-san to his own devices?’_

Miki let out a sigh. Ever since she and Umibozu got involved with Rumi Takahara and her father, more questions arose. She agreed with Ryo that a good thing to do would be to talk to Takahara to get some insight into what could be going on.

Somehow though, Miki had a feeling that answers were not going to be that easy to find.

* * *

 

Kaori had run to meet General in a van down the street from the amusement park and climbed in, slamming the door behind her.

“Sarah was your mission successful?” he asked.

“No,” Kaori said with a frown. “It turns out that Saeba is a more formidable enemy than I thought he would be. I was not able to eliminate him or the girl.”

“I see,” General replied. “And are you sure that you put all of your efforts into this mission?”

“General, I don’t….”

“Sarah, I think you are still confused,” he interrupted. “Don’t forget how this man cruelly used you.”

“I haven’t forgotten,” Kaori insisted.

“Then make sure you focus on that while on this mission,” General said. “What you might think are memories are just lies planted in your head by Saeba. His way of keeping you weak and under his control is to make you believe that you have feelings for him. Don’t believe in him, Sarah. Don’t believe in his lies.”

Sarah nodded and then turned to look out the window as the van they were in sped down the road. Watching her stare out the window, General frowned.

‘ _The drugs and the hypnosis seem to be working for now, but they do not seem to be enough to make her discard her old identity completely,_ he pondered. ‘ _A part of her still clings to the person she was before instead of embracing who she is now as Sarah. The earrings seem to be helping me maintain control over her, but I need to make her cut ties with her old life.’_

An idea finally came to him, and General reached over and took the wig off Kaori’s head.

“General,” she said, reaching a hand up toward her hair. “What are you…?”

“Sarah, in order for us to succeed, we need you to be ready to give your all to the Black Army, just as you did before,” he said. “But right now, your mind and heart are split between the lies you were living and the truth of your existence with us. You need to completely destroy everything that reminds you of those lies, everything that prevents you from being able to return to who you are. Are you willing to do that?”

“Yes,” Kaori nodded, determination clear in her eyes. “I do not want these feelings any more.”

“Good, good,” General nodded. “Then this is what you need to do: you will go back to the illusion you were before, become the woman Saeba claims you are…for a short time. Just long enough to get rid of the reminders of those lies.”

General then pulled out a back and pulled down its zipper, exposing the contents inside.

“Take this to the building where Saeba lives and plant it in his bedroom,” he instructed her. “Then you will finally be free of all his lies.”

Kaori nodded again and took the bag into her hands.

‘ _Yes, finally I will be free…free from the pain in my heart, free from the confusion I feel. He will no longer have the power to hurt me.’_

_“My faith in you is what allows me to fight…if you believe me, that is.”_

_“As I thought, you are the best partner for me….”_

Kaori closed her eyes as she struggled to hold back tears. Every time she set her mind to destroying Ryo Saeba, words like these entered her head, causing her heart to constrict with pain once again.

‘ _Why? Why do I keep feeling this way? Why can’t I stop his words from filling my mind? Will I ever really be free from what he has done to me?’_

_‘Can I ever be free of him?’_

Kaori wiped her eyes and took the contacts out. She decided to focus on General’s next assignment for her in the hopes that it would finally manage to erase all of these thoughts and emotions from her being.

* * *

 

A couple hours later, Reika Nogami sighed as she walked around what appeared to be an empty apartment building.

She had been out all day doing research for one of her current clients and when she arrived back at her office, she found a series of messages from her sister, Saeko, on her answering machine, asking where she was and to find Ryo or Umibozu if possible.

‘ _I wonder what Saeko wants,’_ she wondered. ‘ _Maybe she needs one of them for another job. Well…maybe I should just beat her to Ryo. I could use his help for a couple of jobs myself.’_

Reika dropped by a store to pick up some wine and headed off to Ryo’s apartment building.

‘ _By now, Kaori-san or Ryo should be home and maybe getting ready for dinner. I am sure I can get myself invited to join them with this bottle of wine…and then I can talk Ryo into helping me with my workload. Granted, Kaori-san might balk at the idea, but I think I could come up with some way to sneak this past her.’_

Reika came up through the passageway connecting her office to the basement of Ryo’s building and went up the stairs. She ended up being surprised, however, to find no one coming out to greet her.

“It’s me, Reika. Where are you?”

Reika continued to walk around the floor Ryo’s room was on and then stopped when she heard a muffled sound coming from his bedroom. She went up the stairs and walked right in.

“Hello!” she chirped. Her surprise grew, however, when she saw Kaori hunched on the floor next to Ryo’s bed.

“Kaori-san?”

Kaori froze and turned toward her. Reika noted her irritated expression and tried her best to keep smiling, hoping to dispel Kaori’s bad mood.

“I brought some good wine,” Reika continued. “So why don’t we have this together? Oh and where is Ryo?”

Kaori said nothing as she stood back up and rushed toward her. Reika wasn’t able to move fast enough to prevent Kaori from running into her and pushing her into the ground before running past her toward the exit.

“What?” Reika gasped. “What’s wrong Kaori-san?”

* * *

 

Saeko Nogami drove up to Ryo’s apartment building and was relieved to see Reika’s car parked near her office.

‘ _Good, Reika is back,’_ she thought to herself. ‘ _If I can’t find Ryo here, then perhaps she can help me find him or Umibozu.’_

Saeko parked her car and ran up toward the entrance. She was startled to see Kaori dashing out the front door.

“Kaori-san,” she called out as she reached the steps.

Saeko immediately flinched when she saw the expression on Kaori’s face. Instead of her usual cheer or exasperation, Kaori seemed angry and almost hateful.

“Why did she look at me like that?” Saeko wondered. Saeko watched Kaori run away and decided that it would be better to not chase after her.

‘ _Ryo probably made her mad about something. Miki-san said that she hadn’t seen her in a while. Maybe she’s upset and that’s why she doesn’t want to talk to anyone.’_

Saeko shook her head sadly as she walked inside. Despite the way she occasionally teased Kaori, Saeko still felt protective of her. She remembered how much Makimura had treasured her and as she got to know her, Saeko started to understand why he had felt that way about Kaori and had begun to consider her a friend.

She also was aware, however, of how much Kaori meant to Ryo and did not want anything bad to happen to Kaori partially for his sake as well. Still, Saeko was aware that Ryo was not always as thoughtful as he needed to be with Kaori, and it annoyed her that, once again, Ryo had done something to hurt Kaori’s feelings.

Saeko walked up to Ryo’s floor to find Reika standing near Ryo’s bedroom, a confused look on her face.

“Reika,” she said as she walked toward her. “Did you see Kaori-san?”

“I did,” Reika nodded slowly. “What happened to her? What is going on?”

“I don’t know, but I am sure that Ryo is the reason for all this,” Saeko said. “So let’s go ahead and wait for him here. I needed to talk to him about something anyway.”

* * *

 

A few minutes later, Ryo walked up to his building with Rumi and Umibozu close behind him. Miki had already left with the intention of contacting Takahara, and he and Umibozu decided to wait there until Miki contacted them with any information she could find out.

When he walked into his front room, however, he was shocked to find Reika and Saeko waiting for him, their arms crossed over their chests and annoyed expressions on their faces.

“Hi, I didn’t know you were here.”

“Ryo, what did you do to Kaori-san?” Saeko replied. Ryo started slightly at her question.

‘ _Kaori came back here? She must not have been wearing the disguise she had on earlier or Saeko would have mentioned it,’_ he thought to himself. ‘ _Why did she come back here though? Was she looking for me?’_

“She rushed out of here white-faced a little while ago,” Reika said with a huff.

Despite their calm demeanors, Ryo could tell that both of the Nogami sisters were mad at him. Truthfully though, he couldn’t focus on much else other than the fact that Kaori had finally returned home and he had missed her.

“Hurry up and get in,” Umibozu ordered from behind.

“Umibozu-san? Who is she?”

Ryo glanced back to see Rumi standing close to him, apprehension in her eyes.

“Well she was here when I woke up a couple of days ago,” he answered. He then made sure to smile at Rumi.

“Don’t worry,” he assured her. “These are my friends.”

“I see,” Saeko said while Reika began to glare at Ryo. “I guess she’s the cause.”

Ryo opened his mouth to say more when a faint noise reached his ears. It only took a second for him to realize what it was.

“No!” he said. “Something is planted here. Run outside.”

Ryo dashed toward the door, dragging Rumi by the arm. Umibozu, Reika and Saeko followed him and they all rushed outdoors just as a ball of fire spat out the windows of the building accompanied by a thunderous boom. They watched as an explosion ripped the walls of the building, leaving giant holes all around the top couple of floors.

‘ _Who could have done this?’_ Ryo asked himself. ‘ _Wait, Reika and Saeko said that Kaori was here earlier….Is that why she came back? To plant this bomb?’_

_‘Is she actually trying to kill me?’_

“I guess she’s extremely mad at you,” Reika said in a clipped tone.

“She must be really serious,” Saeko chimed in. “Her special weapon is usually a hammer. I guess you had better hurry up and apologize to her, Ryo.”

“Well, I guess,” he stuttered out. The truth was, he could barely hear Saeko’s or Reika’s admonishments and was still trying to process the idea that Kaori wanted him dead.

‘ _She’s been angry at me before…she’s even threatened to move out and quit City Hunter before…but she never has threatened to kill me. Not like this.’_

“Ryo, where is she?”

Ryo blinked and was about to explain that he had no idea where Kaori went when he realized that Rumi had run from them. He turned just in time to see Rumi take a taxi away from them and immediately headed for his car to follow it. Umibozu and Saeko got into the car with him and as they drove down the road, Saeko explained that she had been looking for him and Umibozu for most of the day.

“The Black Army?” he asked, stunned at her story.

“A terrorist group,” Saeko continued. “The leader is called Sarah and she is a mysterious beauty.”

“A vision and a terrorist?” Ryo echoed.  As he said those words, a new thought came to his mind.

‘ _From what Saeko said, the Black Army has been here a few days. Not long before I met Rumi and around the time that Kaori….Wait! Is that…is that what is going on? Is the Black Army after Rumi? That would explain those men who were after her.’_

_‘And…if they somehow got to Kaori…that would explain why she tried to kill Rumi too. And why she is trying to kill me as well.’_

_‘What did those people do to Kaori?’_

Ryo gripped the wheel tightly as he explained to Saeko who Rumi was and why she might be a target. He kept the rest of his thoughts to himself, however, knowing that if he were to speak his suspicions aloud, he might not be able to control his emotions.

He wished he knew why Rumi had chosen this moment to flee from him, but Ryo had a feeling that he would soon find out and hoped that it would answer at least a couple of his questions.

* * *

 

Moments later, Kaori stood in the shadows with several men from the Black Army, waiting to make a move. She had reported to General that she had succeeded in her task, and she put back on her wig, contacts and clothes, discarding the clothes she had worn to the apartment building into the trash. General had sent her with some men to keep an eye on the building to make sure that Ryo and Rumi died in the explosion. Kaori was disappointed to see everyone escape, but kept her cool as she ordered the men to follow them and be prepared to strike as soon as Rumi got out of the taxi.

Kaori frowned as she watched Rumi rush over to a man with glasses on and embrace him tightly. The man appeared to be happy to see her, and Kaori felt another twinge of jealousy.

‘ _Why is she so special?’_ she fumed silently. ‘ _Why do all these men, including Saeba, fall all over themselves to protect that girl?’_

_‘There is no way that Saeba would ever lift a finger to protect me that way.’_

Kaori gasped and shook her head while clenching one of her hands into a fist.

‘ _Why should I care if Saeba would protect me? Why would I want a womanizer and a coward like that to care about me? I am Sarah, a leader in the Black Army. I can take care of myself. I don’t need him.’_

Kaori took a deep breath and centered her thoughts as she watched Saeko, Ryo and Umibozu rush over to Rumi and the man she had met near the lamp post.

‘ _I might have gotten rid of that building, but I still can’t erase those thoughts and feelings.’_ Kaori thought, her expression grim. _‘It’s just like General said: until I kill Saeba, I won’t be able to be free of him. Well, he won’t get away this time.’_

_‘None of them will.’_


	6. Chapter 6

Ryo scanned the area around him in the park. Even though he couldn’t actually see the men hiding in the shadows, he knew that they were there.

After the taxi dropped off Rumi at the park entrance, it had been simple for him, Umibozu and Saeko to follow her to a corner of the park where a man with glasses was waiting for her.

‘ _So that’s who she was trying to get to,’_ Ryo thought to himself. ‘ _And the way that man is holding Rumi-chan explains why she was so against me touching her…She’s clearly in love with him.’_

Ryo smiled for a second before resuming his serious expression. He was glad that Rumi seemed happy with the man she loved, but he knew that the two of them were still in danger. The surge of murderous intent that Ryo felt as he explained things to Rumi and her boyfriend only confirmed his suspicions.

“How quick they are,” he mumbled to himself.

“I guess they really hate us,” Umibozu quipped. Ryo smirked for a second before giving Rumi and her boyfriend instructions to walk away so as to move out of the direct line of fire.

As Ryo stretched out into the darkness with his senses, he was saddened to discover that he could feel Kaori’s presence among the others who were intent on attacking him.

‘ _It’s her…and it’s not. It’s some kind of twisted version of the presence she normally has.’_

Ryo took a deep breath and joined in the counting while Rumi and her boyfriend walked away from them. He had been disturbed by the fact that every time he ran into Kaori, she seemed less and less like the woman she was before, but right now, Ryo knew that he would have to focus on making sure that he survived the coming onslaught as well as making sure to assist Saeko and Umibozu.

He moved his hand closer to his holster, clearing his mind of all other thoughts, and allowed his instincts to take over.

* * *

 

Kaori frowned as she watched the carnage around her. The men she had brought with her were relentless in their attacks, but their efforts only resulted in causalities among themselves.

‘ _Useless fools,’_ she thought to herself. ‘ _They have no idea what they are dealing with. They are trying to attack Saeba and his cohorts with just brute force, and all they are doing is wasting their time. Saeba is too skilled for such tactics.’_

Kaori’s frowned deepened, but she showed no other reaction to the way her men were systematically wiped out. Even though her disgust and hatred of Ryo grew with each passing hour, she forced herself to acknowledge the fact that she knew him to be a talented professional who would not be stopped by the likes of the people General had had accompany her. A part of her felt a strange sense of pride at that fact, and Kaori felt increasingly uncomfortable with that feeling.

Once the gunfire had stopped, Kaori shook her head and withdrew quietly from the scene.

‘ _It’s pointless to do anything more with Saeba for now. Besides, it’s not as if he can really stop our plan at this stage. It’s time to forget about him and focus on our ultimate objective.’_

Kaori walked away, oblivious to the sound of sirens closing in on the park.

‘ _Ryo Saeba…if we ever meet again…I will kill you.’_

* * *

 

Ryo watched Saeko talk to the police officers who had gathered at the scene. From what he had been able to hear, it sounded like none of the men who were found at the scene had any identification and nothing else on them that could indicate where their comrades could be found.

“As I thought, this is all my fault,” Rumi suddenly said, tears making her voice tremble.

Ryo turned back toward Rumi and listened as she explained how she had been wandering Shinjuku, trying to sort her feelings about her boyfriend, Kazuya, and the situation with her father when she stumbled upon a group of uniformed men transporting a mysterious object.

‘ _So…that’s when she ran into me,’_ Ryo thought. ‘ _That’s why those men were chasing her. Because she had seen too much. That’s why they have continued to chase her. Because she knows where their headquarters are.’_

Ryo frowned as she finished her story and sighed. As much as Rumi had managed to complicate his life, he felt sorry that she had taken on so much blame for the situation that she and the rest of them were currently in.

‘ _She was just trying to search her heart to find a way to be with her beloved,’_ he mused. ‘ _No woman should be made to feel bad for fighting and striving to be with the man she loves. ’_

“So,” Saeko said, nodding her head at Rumi’s story. “And the female soldier who appeared a little while ago…?”

Ryo clenched his hands, but forced himself to show no other outward sign of emotion. He knew who had been leading those soldiers against them, and he knew who was behind the continued attempts on his and Rumi’s life. But despite the facts in front of him, Ryo refused to accept that the woman he knew as Kaori Makimura was responsible for any of it.

“That was the leader of the Black Army, Sarah,” Ryo said to her.

Saeko nodded again before she walked away, saying that she needed to check in with the department. Ryo turned back toward Umibozu and tilted his head at Rumi and Kazuya.

“It’s not safe for them to be wandering around,” he said. “Is there any place we could hide them?”

“Yes,” Umibozu replied. “They could go to my hideout, the one I still have on the outskirts of the city.”

“Good idea,” Ryo said. “It’s isolated and it’s unlikely that the Black Army would look for them there. Plus, there are weapons if they need to defend themselves.”

“I’ll take them up there and then meet you at the café,” Umibozu said. “Miki should be there as well before long.”

Ryo nodded and turned back to stare at the scenery around him. He was certain that it wouldn’t be long before the Black Army made their next move, and he dreaded the idea that Kaori was sure to play a large role in their plans.

‘ _Kaori…are you still there somewhere inside Sarah? Do you remember anything from before…or is Sarah all that you are now?’_

* * *

 

Kaori looked out at the city streets below her and almost smiled when she saw police cars approach the building they were stationed in.

She had met with General a short time ago, and he appeared pleased with the way she reported her latest activities.

“ _Sarah, now it’s time for you to take on the most important job,”_ he had told her. “ _You will take charge of these squads stationed with the bomb, and will negotiate with the Japanese government while handling any possible confrontations with the police. I trust that you will make sure to hold nothing back in your pursuit of our goals.”_

Kaori assured him that she would work to the best of her ability and watched as General left their hideout to take position on a boat they had stationed near Tokyo. She removed the dress she was wearing and changed into one of the uniforms that the rest of her comrades had on. As she did, she couldn’t help but notice how much more comfortable she felt getting out of those fancier clothes and into something more functional.

‘ _Because this is who I am,’_ she told herself. ‘ _I am Sarah, a soldier and a warrior. I am not a soft, helpless woman who needs to be protected and cared for like Takahara…or like the kind of women I am sure Saeba prefers.’_

Two men positioned themselves alongside Kaori and with a snap of her fingers; they fired their bazookas into the crowd of police below. Kaori continued to smile as she watched the police flail helplessly under the barrage of their attacks.

‘ _Soon this entire city will know the strength of the Black Army. And there is no one who can stop us. Not even Saeba.’_

* * *

 

Ryo sat at the counter of the Cat’s Eye Café and struggled for the third time to begin a house of cards. It was something his father used to do when he wanted to clear his mind, and Ryo found that he also was able to steady his nerves while working on such a simple, dexterous task. He was frustrated, however, at how unsuccessful his attempts had been thus far.

‘ _If oyaji were here, he would say that it’s because I’m letting my emotions cloud my mind and disrupt my focus. He would tell me that I need to let go of such obstacles.’_

Ryo frowned as he carefully sat a card onto the pillars he had just made. Most of the time, he tried to avoid thinking about his father, but he could not deny that he continued to rely on and live by the lessons his father had taught him to this day. Ryo was also all too aware that the situation was as dire as any he faced as a guerrilla and that he would probably need all of the skills he had learned growing up in order to stop the Black Army from carrying out their plans.

“Unexploded bombs….” Umibozu scoffed as the newscasters informed the public of the latest warnings from the police. Ryo let out a sigh and looked up from his work.

“If people find out it’s a nuclear bomb, there’s going to be a huge panic,” he replied. Ryo then looked over at Miki, who was doing dishes.

‘ _Still concerned about the café in the midst of all this,’_ he mused. ‘ _I suppose it makes sense. The café is her home and Umibozu’s home. She isn’t going to let a little thing like a terrorist group armed with a nuclear bomb stop her from taking care of their home. She’s a lot like Kaori that way….’_

Ryo felt regret and anxiety creep back into him and decided to try to distract himself. First he tried to encourage Umibozu to take Miki and leave, and when Miki showed no concern about their safety, Ryo couldn’t stop the next words out of his mouth.

“You perverts,” he smirked at them.

“Where did that idea come from?” Umibozu growled at him. Ryo grinned. He enjoyed needling Umibozu and welcomed the chance to lighten the mood.

“In the middle of the night like this, you guys want to be alone in Shinjuku,” he chortled. “So you’re perverts.”

Ryo watched as Umibozu’s face turned red and was satisfied at the result. He was ready to continue with the levity when Miki abruptly ended the mood.

“Hey,” she said. “Instead of coming up with a silly idea like that, why don’t you worry about Kaori-san?”

Ryo’s smile immediately faded and he turned to look back down at the cards on the counter. He couldn’t bring himself to say that that was just what he had been doing for days now: worrying about Kaori, wondering where she had gone, hoping that he would get the chance to see her again. Ryo did not have to agonize over figuring out her location because he knew exactly where she was right now, but instead of making him feel better; it deepened and increased his fears.

“Found you, just as I thought.”

Ryo turned to see Saeko walk into the café and throw a file full of papers onto the counter. She then sat down beside him and began to explain their contents.

“According to these, Sarah is just the name of one of their missions,” Saeko said. “And there are no female operatives by that name.”

“What do you mean?” Miki replied.

“There’s only a person who thinks she’s Sarah,” Saeko continued. “It’s hypnosis. She’s being manipulated by the real leader through hypnosis. They use women who have been trained for special warfare in the countries where they engage in terrorism.”

‘ _So…that’s what happened to Kaori,’_ Ryo said as he looked down at the still of Kaori from the videotape ransom note. ‘ _And apparently they’ve done this before. That means that they’ve had practice bending these women to their will. By now, they have a carefully perfected system to brainwash and program people to carry out their wishes, a system they have been able to use before without fail….a system they used on Kaori…..’_

“Why do they do something like that?” Miki asked.

“Probably to hide who the real leader is from investigators all over the world,” Ryo said, his eyes still fixed on the picture of Kaori.

Saeko confirmed his theory and then used a marker on the picture, revealing to everyone what Ryo already knew…that Sarah was Kaori.

“Ryo, did you know that?” Umibozu said, turning toward him. Ryo’s gaze grew even more intense as he studied the photograph. Saeko’s marks had brought back some familiarity to Kaori’s features, but in some ways that only made it even more difficult to acknowledge the truth of what had happened to Kaori out loud.

“Nobody could mistake it because they were definitely Kaori’s,” he said in a slow deliberate tone. “Kaori’s number thirty-two panty…their nickname is…cutie panda!”

Saeko, Umibozu, and Miki were stunned and shocked at his outburst and the way he continued to focus on things like frivolous things like that, but Ryo didn’t care about their reactions to his words. He did not want to think about Sarah, the cold, calculating leader of the Black Army, he only wanted to think about Kaori Makimura, his partner, the woman who would wear underwear like that and who would have hit him with a hammer if she had heard his comments just now.

He didn’t really listen as the rest of them went back to discussing the situation and the plans they were forming to deal with the Black Army. Instead he continued to ponder Saeko’s comment that the other women who had been transformed into Sarah had been trained to be soldiers or for professional work.

‘ _If I had kept my promise to Makimura in the first place, Kaori wouldn’t be in their hands. It’s because she stayed with me and tried to be my partner. Instead of being happy in a normal life, she spent her time trying to master skills that ended up making her a target for this Black Army.’_

“Ryo,” Saeko said, placing her hand on his arm. Ryo finally looked up at her and was instantly nervous at the concern in her eyes.

“I know that all of us, especially you, are worried about Kaori-san and will do whatever it takes to get her back,” she said. “But I…I have to tell you now that it won’t be so simple. According to the reports from the CIA, many of the women who are forced into becoming Sarah do not recover from the experience. They suffer permanent memory loss or even worse, they have a tenuous hold on their sanity for the rest of their lives. And a couple of them…a couple of them committed suicide rather than deal with the mental anguish they were going through. Granted, some have managed to recover, but those are extremely rare cases….I know that you don’t want to think about any of this in regards to Kaori-san, but I….”

“It’s all right,” Ryo said quietly. “You are just giving me a complete picture of the situation. It’s fine. Besides, there’s really nothing to worry about. We both know that Kaori is too stubborn to fall into a state like that. And if she heard you accuse her of such a thing, she would be chasing you out of here and probably hitting me with a hammer for good measure.”

Saeko gave him a wan smile, and Ryo pondered how he wasn’t entire sure who he was trying to reassure with his words. He then watched her walk out of the café and heard Miki and Umibozu move to a back room to make preparations. Once he was alone, Ryo turned his focus back to the cards in front of him.

He thought again of the tears in Kaori’s eyes when she walked out of the apartment a couple of days ago, about the emptiness he had felt all around him in her absence, about the shock he felt upon seeing Kaori become Sarah, and about the reality that was starting to sink in after Saeko’s warning to him. Ryo now understood that there was a very good chance that he could succeed in his mission to stop the Black Army and save Tokyo from a nuclear bomb while still never seeing Kaori Makimura ever again. The idea that everything Kaori was could be erased from existence because of the greed of a terrorist group and because of his own callous behavior created a black void in his soul.

Ryo picked up the cards on the counter and began to stack them. As he worked his feelings slowly slipped away into that void, leaving behind only the trained killer that had been groomed on the battlefields of Central America and who had been refined by years of hunting other people as a professional. At this moment, there was no room for any semblance of humanity or emotions. There was only a need for the sweeper who would thoroughly clean every last shred of the Black Army out of Shinjuku.

Still, he knew that he could not take such an approach with Kaori when he found her. It was his indifference which ultimately led to this situation and now he knew that he would have to be willing to offer anything and everything inside of him in order to have a chance to get her back.  

Ryo watched the tower of cards grow while his mind reached a resolution. He would either find a way to free Kaori from the grip of Sarah and the Black Army or he would die trying.

For Ryo Saeba, there were no other options.

 

 


	7. Chapter 7

Umibozu continued to push his foot against the gas pedal, forcing his jeep to pick up speed as he drove down the deserted streets of Shinjuku. His expression was pensive as he continued to drive in silence.

“Falcon, what is going on?” Miki asked as she rode beside him in the passenger seat. “I thought we were going to eat something before doing this, but you were in such a rush after Saeba-san left the café. Do you think that Saeba-san is already going after the Black Army?”

“I know that he has,” Umibozu replied. “If he isn’t there by now, he probably will be within minutes.”

“Why did he do that?” Miki said. “Why did he go off by himself? He knew that we were planning on going with him. These people, they have the weapons and training to take on the elite police and defense forces and to defeat them. What is Saeba-san thinking going after them alone?”

Umibozu ground his jaw and continued to mash the gas pedal with his foot. It might have seemed like an innocuous gesture to most people, but he had understood Ryo’s state of mind the moment he saw the elaborate house of cards sitting on the counter…and he could guess what Ryo’s intentions were when he disappeared from the café.

“I know that I shouldn’t be too worried,” Miki continued. “Saeba-san is one of the best professionals in the world, after you of course. But still, going against so many well-armed and highly trained terrorists by himself…he could get hurt or worse. Doesn’t he realize that?”

“He does,” Umibozu said. “He knows exactly what could happen. He just doesn’t care.”

“Falcon….”

“Right now, he is not the Ryo Saeba you know. He is not the pervert who chases after women or the busybody who sticks his nose into everything so he can help people in distress,” he continued. “Right now, he is Ryo Saeba, the professional, the sweeper who brushes away all the filth in his path, the man who inspires terror in all those who would dare to get in his way.”

Umibozu tightened his grip on the steering wheel and kept his eyes focused on the road in front of him.

“I know because I have seen a glimpse of this Ryo Saeba,” he added. “I have seen how he can become something far from human while he is on this path…But this time, this time it’s different. He also knows that he will have to face the one person who could actually kill him.”

“What?” Miki gasped. “You really think that there is someone in the Black Army who could kill Saeba-san?”

“Yes,” Umibozu nodded. “In fact, right now the Black Army have the only person capable of killing Ryo while he is in this state: his partner, Kaori Makimura.”

Miki’s eyes widened as she realized the truth behind Umibozu’s words. She stared at Umibozu in silence, unable to say out loud what she was sure the both of them were thinking.

“You see then, Ryo is aware of the situation he is getting into,” Umibozu said. “But…he is also having to face his failure to prevent his partner from falling into their hands.   That is also something I know a lot about. In our world, the world of a professional, there are few things that are worse than being unable to protect your partner.”   

Umibozu finally pulled his jeep over and turned to face Miki.

“Ryo is not concerned with what will happen to him,” he said. “As long as he is able to wipe out the Black Army and free his partner, he will act as if he has nothing to lose.”

“Nothing to lose?” Miki whispered. “Falcon, we…we have to….” Umibozu pulled a bazooka out of the backseat and got out of the car.

“Don’t worry,” he smirked. “That’s why we are here: to make sure that that moron doesn’t get himself killed.”

* * *

 

Kaori frowned as she watched the city streets below her.

Her men kept informing her that their troop was being depleted. An intruder or a group of intruders were systematically dismantling their squad. She had just sent another warning to the government, but she suspected that they were powerless to stop this threat.

‘ _It must be him…Saeba….’_

Kaori’s temples throbbed and she put a hand to her forehead. She had tried to get used to the noise that emanated from the earrings she wore, but it was becoming increasingly difficult. No matter what she did, she could not get this steady hum of white noise out of her mind. It permeated her thoughts, making it harder and harder to focus. The only time she was able to ignore it was when General spoke to her, but those moments were infrequent and erratic as their plan continued to unfold.

Kaori closed her eyes, her breaths shallow. She did her best to hide her weakness from the others, but she was afraid that her fortitude would not last much longer.

‘ _I need strength. Why can’t I find my strength? Why can’t I be a stronger woman?’_

_“Because you are denying your heart, Kaori.”_

Kaori gasped and opened her eyes, looking for the source of the voice she had just heard. She knew that it had not come from any of her comrades on the roof with her. This voice was too wise, too gentle, and too familiar. She continued to scan the area around her when her eyes caught a fleeting impression of a man, a man with glasses and a long overcoat smiling at her before disappearing.

‘ _Wait…who are you? Why are you so familiar to me?’_

_‘Come back…aniki….’_

_‘Aniki?’_

Kaori put a hand over her mouth, her eyes suddenly wet.

‘ _Brother? Yes, I have a brother…I had a brother. He’s gone now. But…I just saw him. I know he was here. How can this be?’_

_“Kaori….This is not you. This is not who you are. Don’t you remember?”_

Kaori felt tears swim in her eyes she squeezed them shut in an effort to keep them hidden.

‘ _No, I am not Kaori, I am Sarah. General told me who I am. I am Sarah. A leader in the Black Army. Why? Why do you keep telling me this lie, aniki?’_

_“Remember….”_

The white noise continued to pound in her head, but suddenly it seemed to drift into the background as a memory began to surface.

* * *

 

" _Aniki…you aren’t going on another dangerous mission, are you?”_

_Her brother looked over at her and smiled while laughing nervously._

_“Don’t worry, it won’t be that dangerous,” he said. “Besides, Ryo will be there. He won’t let anything happen.”_

_“You trust him so much. Why? Is it just because he’s so good at what he does?” Her brother smiled at her again and walked over to put his hands on his shoulders._

_“Listen,” he said. “I know that Ryo has his…vices and flaws. But that’s just the surface. The truth is that he has a great heart. He just chooses to hide it because, in his world, it would be seen as a sign of weakness.”_

_“So you’re saying that having feelings is a weakness? And yet you’re always telling me that it’s good to have an open heart.”_

_“And I still believe that, Kaori,” her brother countered. “I believe it because I see your generous heart, your kindness and I feel privileged to be a part of your life. That is your strength, Kaori. Ryo’s strength, however, comes from a heart that remains a secret to most people. But just because he keeps his heart hidden does not mean that he does not act on its instructions.”_

_“You both have such wonderful hearts, Kaori. I’m a lucky man to have a partner like him and a sister like you.”_

_“Aniki….”_

* * *

 

Kaori rubbed her eyes before opening them.

‘ _No this can’t be. It can’t be the truth…But I…I….’_

“Sarah, be careful,” General’s voice echoed in her ears. “The intruders are getting closer to you. Do not let them destroy our plans. Stop them at all costs.”

Kaori reached down and put her hand over the pistol she was carrying. She struggled to form coherent thoughts as her mind fought against the memories that continued to seep in.

The only thing she knew for sure is that she would defend herself and not let anyone near the bomb that was behind her.

* * *

 

Ryo smirked as he continued to creep along the buildings, his senses on full alert. Truthfully, he was somewhat disappointed at how easy it had been for him to breach their defenses. The professional in him was eager for a challenge and had expected a much more desperate struggle. Instead, he mechanically took down one man after another, hunting them down with little effort. He had lost track of how many people he had shot. All he knew for certain was that he had greatly reduced their numbers.

Ryo worked the kinks out of his neck and smirked again when he heard another explosion resonate in the background. He knew that Umibozu had found yet another target and the yells and cries of people off in the distance told Ryo that Umibozu had hit his mark.

‘ _Umi-chan is certainly enjoying himself,’_ he mused. ‘ _That octopus has probably been missing this kind of action. How does Miki-chan put up with a guy like him?’_

Ryo heard the sound of footsteps behind him, and he whirled around in time to shoot a man who tried to ambush him. He then paused in front of a building toward the center of the street. He knew that this was where the bomb had been stored and that there would be even more people guarding it.

He also knew that one of the people guarding it was Kaori.

Silence returned to his surroundings, and Ryo suspected that Umibozu had decided to stop and let him go on alone. Honestly, Ryo was grateful for that and told himself that he would try to find some way to thank Umibozu if he actually made it out of this alive.

Ryo re-loaded his pistol and walked toward the building with a deliberate pace.

* * *

 

Kaori pulled out her pistol as her men ran down toward the lower floors of the building. They had all heard the gun shots echo through the empty corridors of the levels below and could tell that they were getting closer and closer to the roof.

“Stay here, ma’am,” one of her comrades said. “You have the switch to the bomb. You have to make sure that our plans do not fail.”

The man then dashed down into the stairwell, and moments later, Kaori heard even more gunfire. Seconds after that, she looked to see a man, who had taken position above her, cry out and fall to the ground.

‘ _He’s here. He’s going to try to shoot me…He’s going to try to stop our plan.’_

_‘I won’t let him. Do you understand, Ryo Saeba? I will not let you kill me too. Not without a fight.’_

* * *

 

After shooting the man perched above his position, Ryo ran out into the open. He could see the bomb on a platform above him and started to search for more soldiers when he heard someone walk over to the top of the stairs next to him. He looked up to see Kaori standing above him, her gun pointed at him.

‘ _Kaori….’_

* * *

 

Kaori kept her gun pointed at him, waiting for Ryo to make a move.

‘ _Don’t move,’_ she told him silently. ‘ _Do not move or I will kill you.’_

“Kill him! Murder that man, Sarah!”

Kaori heard General’s voice in her mind, insistent and commanding. She raised her gun at Ryo, but hesitated. She could not understand why, but she simply could not bring herself to shoot him while he just stood there, his gun lowered and his defenses down.

‘ _Don’t move. Don’t move Saeba. If you move I will kill you. I will.’_

“Kaori!”

Kaori gasped. She felt her entire body shiver and quake at the sound of Ryo saying that name. How could one word make her react this way? What were these feelings that flooded into her?

“Don’t you understand?” Ryo continued. “I’m Ryo. Ryo Saeba.”

Kaori felt her heart pound and her hands tremble. The words Ryo was saying were one of the few things that made any sense right now. She clung to them as she sought any kind of meaning or reason that could tell her what she should do next.

She found her answer in an instant as she watched Ryo narrow his eyes at her.

“Stop! I don’t want to shoot you,” he said.

‘ _It’s just like General said. He will kill me if he gets the chance.’_

_‘I can’t let him kill me.’_

Kaori swallowed hard and pulled the trigger.

* * *

 

Ryo only had a fraction of a second to realize what Kaori was doing before a bullet pierced his thigh. He cried out in pain as he dropped to his knees and clasped his leg.

This was not an unfamiliar pain. He had been shot before, more than once and in more than one part of his body. It always hurt, and a couple of times, it had almost been fatal. It was not even the first time that he had been shot by someone he cared about and trusted, but as Ryo watched his blood flow between his fingers and drip onto the ground, he noted that this time the pain seemed to radiate beyond what he could feel physically. For Ryo, this was far worse than any of those other times because it was Kaori: Kaori, his partner, Kaori, the woman he loved more than anyone else in this world, Kaori, the woman with the beautiful and kind heart that always searched for ways to help and nurture everyone around her. She was the last person who Ryo could ever imagine doing this to anyone, and especially to him. Even though he had learned to deal physically and mentally with the injuries he received as part of his profession, he could not have prepared himself for how he felt when Kaori shot him.

Ryo looked up at her, his eyes searching for any trace of Kaori behind the mask of Sarah, his soul imploring her to show some sign of the person she was before.

* * *

 

Kaori watched Ryo kneel on the ground and hold his leg. She knew that he was no longer a danger to her and she raised her pistol again to finish the job.

Ryo raised his head to look at her, and Kaori was startled by the look in his eyes. She had expected to see anger, hatred or lethal intent in response to what she did. Instead, his eyes were filled with sadness and with pleading.

Kaori moved her finger back onto the trigger and tried to squeeze it, but her finger refused to move. She could not stop staring into Ryo’s eyes and her heart ached at the pain she saw there.

‘ _Why? I wanted to make him suffer. Make him suffer for all the suffering he caused me.’_

_‘But I…I can’t…Even though I know he hurt me, I can’t do this….I can’t hurt him….I can’t….’_

_‘Ryo….’_

Ryo slowly made his way to his feet, and Kaori couldn’t help but think about how agonizing that motion had to be for him.

“Wake up,” he said to her, his voice rough with pain and emotion. “You! Your name is Kaori.”

Tears filled her eyes as she listened to him.

‘ _No, not Kaori. That’s not who I am. Why do you keep calling me that? Why aren’t you raising your gun? I shot you. I tried to kill you. Why aren’t you trying to kill me?’_

_‘Why are you looking at me with those eyes?’_

_‘Why do you care about what happens to me?’_

“What’s wrong, Sarah?” General’s voice screamed in her brain. “Kill him! Kill him!”

Kaori could no longer stop the tears from streaming down her face. She could see Ryo start to walk toward her, and she knew that she would have to stop him. She fired her pistol, her shots wide and erratic and not coming anywhere close to hitting him.

‘ _Please stop, Ryo. Please stop walking toward me. Please don’t make me shoot at you. General, no I can’t…I can’t kill him. Please don’t ask me to.’_

Kaori kept her gun aimed at Ryo as he continued to advance toward her, but she knew that it was futile. She could not shoot him again. She could not bear to make him suffer any more. She was certain that walking like that was hurting him, and each step that he took became another sharp pain in her heart.

“Sarah! Can you hear me, Sarah? Listen to what I say very carefully.”

Kaori panted as she tried to focus on General’s voice. She was losing control fast, and she prayed that he would give her the answers she needed to end the turmoil she felt.

“Switch on the nuclear bomb, right now.”

‘ _Yes…switch on the bomb. End everything here. That is the answer.’_

Kaori reached into her pocket and pulled out the switch while keeping her eyes fixed on Ryo.

“What’s the matter? Can’t you obey my order?” General screeched at her. “Sarah, switch on the nuclear bomb!”

‘ _I will. I will push this switch,’_ Kaori told herself. ‘ _I do that and my mission is complete. I do that and all of this pain and confusion will end in a few short minutes.’_

Kaori pressed the button down, her eyes widening as Ryo lifted his gun at her.

‘ _So you will shoot me after all, Ryo? It’s fine. Go ahead and shoot me. I won’t stop you.’_

_‘It’s all over anyway. Nothing matters now.’_

* * *

 

Ryo took aim at the earrings that hung on either side of Kaori’s face. He had heard a faint voice instructing her to push the switch for the bomb, and he suspected that the leader of the Black Army was using the earrings to control Kaori.

Ryo frowned and pulled the trigger twice in rapid succession. He watched the earrings shatter and fall to the ground while Kaori cried out and started to sway. She stumbled toward him and he held out his arms to catch her. She soon fell against him, and Ryo wrapped his arms around her.

‘ _It’s all right, Kaori. It’s over now. I won’t let them control you anymore.’_

Ryo’s leg throbbed, and he could not stand for another second. He slowly crumpled to the ground while still being careful to lower Kaori down gently. He collapsed into a sitting position and cradled Kaori close to him.

He held her that way for a long moment, his eyes closed and a slight smile on his face. Despite the pain in his leg and the danger they were still in, Ryo felt a sense of calm he had not felt since the moment Kaori left their apartment building two days ago. Feeling Kaori in his arms, feeling her breath warm his chest, was enough to ease the anxiety and sorrow he had been carrying ever since she had walked away from him.

 ‘ _It will be all right. Kaori will get better. She will get better and will go back to being the person she was before.’_

Ryo squeezed her even closer to him as he repeated those thoughts in his mind over and over again. He kept reminding himself of how she had hesitated to kill him and of the tears that had been in her eyes, and he chose to believe that they were signs that the Black Army had not wiped away all traces of Kaori’s memories and personality from her consciousness.

Still, Ryo hated to see her in such a lost and vulnerable state, and he wished that there was some way he could have prevented all of this. The more he thought about it though, the more he realized that it was his own selfish desire to never really let her go that put her in this situation. It was then that he made a silent promise to make sure that she left him and his world the moment she began to regain her sense of who she was.

Eventually the ticking of the bomb caught his attention again, and Ryo looked up and studied it. Saeko had given him the basics of the makeup of the device, and he had been surprised to find out that it wasn’t all that different from bombs he had encountered in the past as a guerrilla and that it was actually simpler than most of those.

“I wonder if I could….”

Ryo aimed his gun at the casing surrounding the timing mechanism and fired a series of shots, loosening the screws that held it together. Soon the wires connected to the detonator and the timer were exposed, and he was left with one last decision.

“Red or white?”

Ryo took a deep breath. He had faced worse odds, but the stakes were rarely anywhere near as high as they ones he was dealing with now. He continued to deliberate the choice in his mind until he felt the muzzle of a gun press against his chest.

He looked down to see Kaori staring straight at him, her gun pointed at his heart, her finger poised on the trigger, and a vacant look in her eyes. Ryo couldn’t hide his astonishment from his face.

‘ _I thought that she would stop this once the leader could not directly control her with his hypnosis…but was I wrong? Is she still Sarah after all?’_

Ryo thought again about what Saeko had told him about the other women who had been made into Sarah, and now he could no longer evade the possibility that Kaori was truly gone forever. That thought made him lower his gun and slump downward in defeat. His lips then seemed to move of their own accord.

“It’s ok. Shoot me.”

Ryo felt his instincts recoil in protest. He had been trained since he was a child to survive and never give up no matter how bad the situation was. But those instincts were not enough to halt the despair that was beginning to envelope his soul. He saw Kaori’s eyes shine with fresh tears, and he tried to swallow down the lump in his own throat as he opened his mouth to speak again.

“If you can’t go back to being yourself,” he murmured. “There’s no meaning to life for me.”

Ryo trembled as he said those words. He could feel the armor that normally protected his heart fall away, and he was petrified of the exposure. But that fear did not change the truth behind the things he had just said.

“The man who makes you cry, is missing you now,” he added.

Ryo continued to stare at her and watched as tears dribbled out of her eyes and as she tried to speak.

“I…I….”

He reached up and brushed some of the tears from her cheek. Ryo suspected that she was trying to prepare herself to shoot him, and he found that he did not want to fight her. Not if she was going to be Sarah for the rest of her life.

Ryo leaned closer to her. He knew he would probably die on this rooftop in a couple of moments, but before that happened, he needed to tell Kaori at least once how he felt about her. Just once, he would make sure that she understood everything that was in his heart.

For a second, his mind searched for the words, but then his heart guided him to kiss her instead. 

The kiss was long and deep and Ryo caressed her tenderly as he did it. He tried to express everything he had been hiding with this kiss: his respect for her strength, the gratitude he had for everything she did for him, his constant desire to protect her, and the love that he had carried in his heart. He soon felt Kaori respond to his kiss and that only made him increase the intensity of his actions.

He was so caught up in this kiss; he barely noticed it when Kaori dropped her gun to the ground.

Moments later, he moved his lips away and watched as Kaori gave him the briefest of smiles before falling unconscious again. Ryo wasn’t sure what her expression had meant, but he did hope that his feelings were clear to her, if only for a moment in time.

He then looked over at the bomb again and saw that he only had seconds to disarm it. He shook his head as his vision suddenly became fuzzy and his body shook from shock.

‘ _I’ve lost too much blood…I’m passing out…No, no I have to stay awake and try to stop the bomb first…But which wire? Red or white?’_

Ryo lifted his magnum to fire, blinking several times in an effort to focus his eyes on the target. He knew that he would only have one chance at this, and for a rare moment in his life, he was paralyzed with indecision.

“ _Ryo…Ryo, listen to me…”_

Ryo gasped as he heard Makimura’s voice speak to him. It was as if his friend and former partner was right next to him, even though Ryo knew that that was impossible.

‘ _Makimura? I….’_

_“Ryo, do not be afraid. Just follow your instincts. Kaori and I…we both still believe in you.”_

Ryo closed his eyes and slowly re-opened them while aiming again at the wires. As he held up his gun, he could have sworn that he could feel Makimura guide his hand.

“ _Shoot at the wires. And do not worry…I know that your bullet will not miss its mark.”_

Ryo squeezed the trigger, and he watched as the bullet seemed to move in slow motion toward the white wire. He felt one last flash of doubt that he had made the wrong decision, but then he saw Makimura smiling at him as the bullet sailed toward the bomb.

“ _It’s all right,”_ Makimura’s voice echoed inside his head. “ _Everything is going to be fine now. Just as I knew it would be.”_

_‘Maki-chan….’_

Ryo watched the bullet rip through the white wire as the timer approached zero. He braced himself for the explosion, but found only silence. Ryo then glanced at the timer to see the numbers fade and disappear.

‘ _Thank you, Maki-chan,’_ Ryo said silently as he finally released the breath he had been holding.

“ _Thank you, Ryo…and remember, Kaori needs you, both now and forever. Please…do not forget your promise. Please take care of my sister.”_

Ryo groaned and dropped his gun to the ground. He tried to get up, but only managed to make it onto his knees before stumbling back down. He landed on his back, and Kaori fell against his chest. He tried a couple more times to rise to his feet, but could not find the strength to lift himself up.  He collapsed again onto his back, too faint to do anything else.

‘ _I can’t…I can’t hold out much longer. I waited too long to move and now it’s too late for me to get away from here. Not without leaving Kaori behind…No…No, I can’t leave her. I won’t….’_

Ryo put his arms around Kaori’s waist and held her against him again as he started to shiver. He was still unsure if Kaori would be able to regain her memories, but he comforted himself with the knowledge that she would not be alone during her struggle.

‘ _Saeko, Reika, Umi-chan and Miki-chan will take care of her. I know they will. They won’t leave her alone during this.’_

Ryo kissed Kaori’s forehead before staring up at the night sky. A part of him had always worried that his last moments would be spent in some dark alley, alone and tossed aside like a piece of trash. He was glad that it appeared instead that he would have Kaori in his arms and would get the chance to gaze at the stars one more time.

The last sounds Ryo heard as his eyes rolled back and he lost consciousness were the sounds of voices hovering over him.

“Saeba-san? Saeba-san, can you hear me? What happened? Is Kaori-san all right?”

“He’s been shot. We need to get him out of here now.”

“Falcon, there’s so much blood. Saeba-san, please, hold on. You have to hold on.”

“Miki, you help Kaori…I will get Ryo….Ryo, you idiot, do not die now. Stay with us….”

 


	8. Chapter 8

In an isolated waiting area of the hospital, three people sat quietly, the silence overwhelming them.

* * *

 

_Thinking that Ryo might need backup after all, Umibozu had decided to go with Miki to the building where the bomb was being held. After a thorough search, the both of them had been shocked to find both Ryo and Kaori lying on the rooftop, with Kaori unconscious and Ryo falling into shock from a bullet wound in his leg. Umibozu and Miki managed to transport them back to their jeep and rush them to a nearby hospital, but once they were taken to the emergency room, they had heard nothing else from any of the staff._

_It had been Umibozu who had spoken first after they arrived._

_“There might be complications in treating those two,” he said._

_“What do you mean, Falcon?”_

_“Kaori appears to have been drugged in some way and the doctors are sure to notice that the wound in his leg is from a bullet,” he replied. “There might be a lot of questions and possibly police involvement in this….something Ryo can ill afford to have.”_

_Miki frowned as she silently agreed with him, but suddenly a flash of inspiration shone in her eyes._

_“I’m going to make a couple phone calls,” she said._

_Several minutes later she returned with a confident smile on her face._

_“Miki, what did you do?”_

_“I got a hold of our client and explained the situation to him,” she said. “It turns out that he is very grateful that the two of us and Saeba-san were able to protect his daughter from a terrorist group, and he appears to be willing to show his gratitude by helping us ‘manage’ the situation here at the hospital.”_

_Umibozu did not say anything, but Miki could tell by the slight smile on his face that he was proud of her quick thinking._

_“I also got a hold of Reika-san,” she continued. “She said that Saeko-san was able to take out the rest of the Black Army on their boat. The both of them will be here as soon as they can.”_

_“Good,” Umibozu said. “I’m glad that they were able to get rid of the rest of that filth. They needed to be eliminated.”_

_A short while later, Reika had shown up, a worried look on her face._

_“Umibozu-san, Miki-san, she said. “Have you heard anything?”_

_“No,” Miki replied. “All I know is that Saeba-san was taken into surgery and that Kaori-san is being examined by a pair of specialists. They haven’t told us anything else.”_

_“Onesan is still on the boat rounding up the rest of the Black Army,” Reika said as she sat down. “It will be a while before she gets here….Miki-san, what happened? You said that Ryo had been shot. I can’t believe it. Ryo’s one of the best professionals in the world. I can’t believe that someone was able to critically injure him that way.”_

_“We don’t know what happened,” Miki said, shaking her head. “Saeba-san took out the terrorists who were guarding the bomb by himself. He and Kaori were unconscious on the ground when we got there.”_

* * *

 

After that there was little in the way of conversation, each of them choosing to keep company with their own thoughts. Another hour passed and Saeko walked into the room to join them.

“Reika told me what happened before she came here,” she explained as she sat down next to her sister. “Has there been any word?”

“None,” Reika said, shaking their head. “What is taking so long? Miki-san, I thought that you and Umibozu-san said that Ryo’s injury wasn’t serious.”

“It wasn’t. The bullet went clean through,” Miki replied. “But Saeba-san…he lost so much blood. He must not have been putting any pressure on his leg to stop the bleeding. He hadn’t even dressed the wound. If we had arrived a few minutes later, he probably would have….”

Miki stopped and turned her gaze back toward Umibozu who reassured her with a silent nod of his head. Miki had a ghost of a smile for a moment before her expression became somber again, and she stared at the floor. The Nogami sisters were sure that there had been an entire conversation within that exchange and they chose to let them keep it to themselves.

“I remember the doctor reports from the CIA files,” Saeko said. “They mentioned that when they examined the women who had been forced to act as Sarah that many of them had been given strong narcotics and some psychotropic drugs. I made sure to send copies of these reports to the physicians here so that they might have a better idea of how to treat Kaori-san.”

“ _Onesan_ , they aren’t going to arrest Kaori-san or Ryo, are they?” Reika asked. “You’ll make sure that they stay out of any investigation, right?”

“Don’t worry,” Saeko said with a smile glancing over at Umibozu and Miki. “Apparently, the Minister of Defense has decided to take over all aspects of the follow-up to this investigation. Both Kaori-san and Ryo are being treated by doctors who have had ‘special instructions’ from Takahara-san. Also, from what I’ve seen so far, there has been absolutely no mention of the identities of the mysterious ‘security force team’ who helped to secure the nuclear bomb. And as for Sarah…the official word is that she’s vanished.”

“I suppose this is one of the benefits of having powerful clients,” Umibozu smirked.

“Say Falcon, I didn’t know that we had become part of an official security force team,” Miki teased. “Does this mean that you are going to try to shirk on your responsibilities at the café?”

“Hmph,” Umibozu said, turning his head to the side. “I’d rather wash every single dish we have than spend one day listening to the rhetoric of some security official telling me how to maintain order.”

Miki, Saeko, and Reika each let out a short laugh before lapsing into silence again.  A minute later, a man wearing a white coat walked into the center of the room.

“Detective Nogami?” he said. Saeko stood up and walked over to him.

“Yes?”

“We finished repairing the damage to Saeba-san’s leg,” the doctor said. “The injury was minor and should heal with no complications. He did, however, lose a critical amount of blood and required a transfusion. Fortunately, his condition has stabilized, and he is resting in his room.”

“And Makimura-san, what can you tell me about her condition?” Saeko asked.

“I’m afraid things are more complicated for Makimura-san,” the doctor said, shaking his head. “She has no real injuries to speak of other than some minor bruising, but we are worried about her mental and emotional state. We did find traces of many of the drugs listed in the reports the police department has provided us with in her blood. It will probably be a couple of days before they are completely out of her system.”

The doctor paused and tapped the files in his hands.

“The problem lies in actually examining and treating her,” he continued. “When she is conscious, Makimura-san is very agitated and prone to outbursts of physical violence. She struck one doctor who tried to examine her with some kind of large hammer. We still do not understand where that came from.”

Everyone else laughed nervously while large drops of sweat dropped off their foreheads, none of them having the heart to explain the phenomenon to the doctor. 

“She will not answer any questions put to her. In fact, she barely talks at all,” the doctor continued. “And she won’t let anyone touch her. We’ve had to sedate her more than once in order to run tests on her. The thing is, we are reluctant to continue doing that due to the drugs already in her system and would like to find another way to calm her down. Does Makimura-san have any family who could spend time with her?”

“I’m afraid not,” Saeko replied. “I…I knew her brother, her only family. He died a few years ago.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” the doctor nodded. “Well then, are you people friends of hers, by any chance?  We really do need to find someone who can help her calm down so we can treat her properly.”

“May we see her?” Miki said, leaping to her feet. “Kaori-san is a dear friend of ours. We would like to help her.”

“It’s fine if it’s all right with Detective Nogami,” the doctor said. “We’ve received instructions to have all visitors for either Makimura-san or Saeba-san be approved by her.”

“It’s fine,” Saeko said. “These people are close friends with the both of them.”

“All right then, I will take you to her,” the doctor said. “But I will warn you now that she is not in a very good state of mind…and it appears that she is having issues with her memory.”

“We understand,” Saeko nodded. “We will do everything we can.”

* * *

 

The doctor ushered them into a room where Kaori was sitting on a bed, her legs pulled close to her chest and her head resting against her knees. She rocked slightly in place and showed no reaction to the sound of people entering the room. Miki moved cautiously toward the bed.

“Kaori-san?” she murmured quietly. “Kaori-san, can you hear me?” Kaori lifted her head and moved to back up against the wall.

“Who are you?” Kaori whispered. “And who is this ‘Kaori’? Everyone keeps calling me Kaori Makimura, but…I don’t even know who she is.”

“Kaori-san, that is your name,” Miki assured her. “It’s who you are.”

“No, no I don’t know you,” Kaori said, her voice rising in volume. “Go away. Leave me alone.” Miki’s eyes dimmed with sadness and Saeko walked over to stand next to Miki.

“Kaori-san, do you remember me?” Saeko asked. “I used to work with your brother when he was a detective. Do you remember that?”

“ _Aniki_?”  Kaori mumbled. “You knew _aniki_?”

“Yes,” Saeko smiled. “You remember your brother, right?”

“No, no my brother… _aniki_ …he’s dead,” Kaori cried, tears springing to her eyes. “I know he’s gone. You…I don’t know you. Go away.”

“Kaori-san, please,” Miki said. “We want to help you. We want to help you remember your life.”

“I don’t believe you,” Kaori said, her tears increasing. “Everyone keeps telling me that they know the truth about me and about my life. But you just want to use me too. Just like…just like he did….”

“He?” Saeko said. “Do you mean the leader of the Black Army?”

“Black Army?” I…that sounds familiar,” Kaori said, confused. For a moment she put a hand to her chin and bowed her head as she mulled over those words.

“Kaori-san….” Miki began. She stopped, however, when Kaori lifted her head and stared at her with panic filled eyes.

“No, leave, go away,” Kaori nearly shouted. “I don’t know any of you. You just want to lie to me and get me to do what you want. Go away.”

Kaori fell face down onto the mattress and sobbed into the sheets. Saeko, Miki, Reika, Umibozu and the doctor all backed out of the room. Once they were in the hallway, the doctor shut the door behind him.

“You see the problem now?” the doctor said. “To be honest, she actually reacted better with you people than she has with any of the doctors or nurses here. Normally, she wouldn’t even talk to us and would throw things at us if we tried to get too close.”  

“Poor Kaori-san,” Miki said, shaking her head. “I wish there was something we could do.”

“I am hoping that time and basic care will be enough to help her start to regain some control over her emotions and that she will begin to recover her memories on her own,” the doctor said. “But I am afraid that she will suffer a great deal until then if we can’t find a way to help her relax.”

“Doctor, may I see Saeba-san?” Saeko asked.

“I ask that you wait a little while longer until he’s fully recovered from the anesthesia,” the doctor said. “After that, I see no reason why you can’t visit him. I will send a nurse to inform you when you can go to his room.”

“Thank you, doctor,” Saeko replied. “Please keep me posted on Makimura-san as well.”

The doctor nodded and walked away down a nearby corridor. Once he was gone, everyone sighed, their shoulders slumping.

“What can we do now?” Miki said. “Kaori-san doesn’t trust any of us.”

“For the moment, we wait,” Umibozu said. “Kaori will have to learn to trust us again and so for now all we can do is remain here.”

“That’s it?” Reika said. “Just hang around here and hope that she’ll trust us eventually?”

“You cannot force trust,” Umibozu replied. “The only way it can exist is if it is offered freely…and the only way we can achieve that is to be steadfast in our position.”

“Falcon is right,” Miki nodded. “We will just have to be there for Kaori-san as much as possible. Eventually, she will figure out that we are here to support her.” Miki then walked back over to the door of Kaori’s room.

“I’m going to sit with her,” she said. “Maybe she will ignore me or not want me around, but I’m not going to let her think that I will just walk away from her.”

“Miki-san…could I join you?” Reika asked.

“Sure,” Miki smiled at her. “I think Kaori-san could use all the support she can get.”

Miki and Reika walked back into the room. They closed the door behind them, and Umibozu moved to lean against the wall. Saeko started to walk away, but then paused and studied him.

“Umibozu-san, you said that you found Ryo and Kaori-san unconscious on the roof?” she said. “Were there any other members of the Black Army still alive at that point?”

“No,” Umibozu said. “It appears that Ryo eliminated all of the ones in the building before going to the roof.”

“I see,” Saeko said. “Umibozu-san…you know Ryo as well as I do…if not a little better than me…do you believe that any of those terrorists had the skill to injure Ryo that way?”

“You don’t believe that a member of the Black Army was responsible for shooting him?” Umibozu asked cagily.

“I believe that the one who shot him might have thought that she was a member of the Black Army,” Saeko replied. “Even though it wasn’t the truth.”

Umibozu grimaced and nodded his head while crossing his arms over his chest. They remained silent for a moment longer before Saeko let out a sigh.

“I thought so,” she said. “It was Kaori-san who shot Ryo, wasn’t it?”

“I believe so, yes,” Umibozu said. “I doubt, however, that she was in her right mind at the time.”

“Do you think Ryo will be able to make that distinction as well?” Saeko asked. “I will not claim to have a true understanding of your world, of Ryo’s world, but I do know that betrayal is something that is difficult to forgive.”

“You mean, do I think that Ryo will forgive Kaori for what she did?” Umibozu said. “Hard to say. You are right. In our world, the betrayal of a partner is something that is nearly impossible to forgive. But…we both know that Ryo understood the situation that Kaori was in and we both know that Ryo considers Kaori to be far more than just his partner in City Hunter.”

Umibozu frowned and bowed his head.

“Still, even with that knowledge and with those feelings, it is difficult to overcome instincts,” he added. “I can say that a professional does not forget the moment when someone shoots him, that moment when someone almost takes his life. As professionals, we are trained to survive and respond accordingly when someone tries to kill us.”

“So, you are saying that it’s impossible for Ryo to move past what she did?” Saeko asked.

“I am saying that it will be complicated no matter what Ryo decides to do,” Umibozu said.  

“What a mess,” Saeko sighed again. “I don’t know how they are going to be able to fix this.”

“Nor do I,” Umibozu said. “But I have also learned to not underestimate either of them. If anyone could set things straight in a situation like this, it is the two of them.”

“You’re right,” Saeko smiled. “I suppose we should just continue to have faith.”

“Detective Nogami?”

The two of them looked over to see a nurse standing at the end of the hallway.

“Saeba-san has finally come out of the anesthesia and is awake right now,” the nurse said. “The doctor has cleared it for you to see him.”

“Thank you,” Saeko said. The nurse nodded and gave her the room number before walking away.

“I’m going to have a talk with Ryo,” Saeko said.

* * *

 

A couple minutes later, Saeko drew close to the door of Ryo’s room, and she wondered if perhaps she should delay this visit so Ryo could have time to rest and recover from his injury.

She immediately discarded that idea, however, when she heard a woman squeal from behind the door.

“Stay away from me!”

“But how am I going to get better without your gentle touch to nurture me?”

“Your recovery has nothing to do with your hand on my thigh.”

“Oh trust, me it does, it does…..”

‘ _And here I was foolish enough to be worried about him,’_ Saeko thought to herself. ‘ _When will I learn?’_

A nurse then stomped out the room and slammed the door behind her before racing down the hallway. Saeko put a hand to her face for a moment and sighed before walking into the room. Once inside, she found Ryo sitting upright in bed with one of his legs heavily bandaged and sitting on top of the sheets.

“How are you feeling, Ryo?” Saeko smiled at him. “You had us worried.”

“I’m fine,” Ryo grinned at her. “It’s just a scratch. Those jerks in the Black Army really had very little in the way of marksmanship skills.”

“Except it wasn’t one of them who shot you, was it?” Saeko asked as she sat down in a chair beside the bed. Ryo’s grin faded and he glared at her.

“What are you implying?” he said.

“You know what I am implying,” Saeko replied. “That it was Kaori-san.”

“Saeko,” Ryo said, his voice low but forceful. “Never say that out loud again.”

“Ryo, I know that you are probably upset, but….”

“Enough,” he interrupted. “I do not want to talk about it. And I forbid you to ever mention it to Kaori. As far as she and the rest of you are concerned, it was a member of the Black Army who shot me. End of discussion.”

Saeko wanted to say more, but the look in Ryo’s eyes told her that it wouldn’t be wise to continue.  She was surprised at his reaction, and she wondered yet again what had happened on the rooftop between the two of them.

“All right,” she said. “You will be happy to know that we were able to wipe out the rest of the Black Army. We have the survivors in custody.”

“What about their leader?” Ryo said. Saeko saw a glint of rage in Ryo’s eyes, but did her best to ignore it. She could not shake the feeling, however, that he was waiting to see if he was going to have the opportunity to take out some revenge for what had been done to Kaori.

“Dead,” she said. “He tried to resist arrest and I was forced to shoot him.”

“It’s just as well,” Ryo smirked. “At least this way, Kaori won’t have to worry about him ever again.”

“Ryo…about Kaori-san…,” Saeko said, her tone hesitant.

“What is it?” Ryo asked, worry evident in his features.

“The doctors are doing everything they can for her,” Saeko continued. “But, Kaori…she is struggling, Ryo. The doctors have to sedate her in order to treat her, and when we tried to visit her…Ryo, she didn’t recognize any of us and she certainly does not trust us.”

Ryo let out a long sigh and closed his eyes. He stayed that way for over a minute before he re-opened them and began to scoot himself out of bed.

“What are you doing?” Saeko said, rising to her feet. “You need to rest.”

Ryo ignored her and carefully moved to stand up. The moment he was upright, however, he groaned and almost fell down onto the floor. Saeko rushed over and caught him so she could help him sit back down onto the bed.

“You shouldn’t try to walk around,” she said. “You’ve been shot and you lost a considerable amount of blood. If you try to move too much now, you’ll just tear your stitches.”

“I have to see her, Saeko,” Ryo grunted, his face still contorted with pain.

Saeko watched as Ryo tried to get to his feet again before dropping back down onto the bed and holding his head. She hated to see Ryo so weak and vulnerable and wished he would allow himself more time to heal. But then it occurred to her that the only way Ryo could heal was if he could be sure that Kaori was on the road to recovery as well.

“Wait, Ryo,” she said. “I’ll take you to her, I promise. Just let me get you a wheelchair first.”


	9. Chapter 9

Moments later, Ryo was riding in a wheelchair with Saeko pushing him along. At first, the doctor treating Ryo had strenuously objected to his being out of bed, but then Saeko reminded him of the problems he faced in treating Kaori.

“ _You said that you needed to find someone who could help her,”_ she had told him. “ _I think you will find that he is our best chance of reaching her.”_

Ryo had ignored most of this conversation. He knew that he would see Kaori whether the doctors wanted him to or not, so for him, there was little point in discussing it. Still, he remained silent as a way to humor Saeko. Eventually, Saeko was able to clear things with the doctor and they continued on their way to Kaori’s room. As they approached, they saw Miki and Reika walk out of Kaori’s room. Upon seeing Ryo, their faces lit up with relief and happiness.

“Ryo, I’m so glad that you’re all right,” Reika said, bending down to kiss him on the cheek. Ryo immediately grinned, his eyes glazing over with lust. Before she could move away from him, he grabbed her and pulled her close.

“How about another kiss to make Ryo-chan feel even better?” Ryo giggled as he puckered up. Instead of a kiss, however, he was met with twin mini-hammers to the head as both Saeko and Reika clobbered him.

“Reika, you really should have known better than to give Ryo any sort of encouragement,” Saeko said as she tossed her hammer aside. 

“I know,” Reika frowned. “I don’t know what came over me.”

“Saeba-san, I am happy to see you doing better,” Miki sighed while shaking her head. “But should you really be out of bed? You were in critical condition just a few hours ago.”

“Ah ha, ha, I’m fine, Miki-chan,” Ryo laughed. “So how about you give Ryo-chan a kiss too?” Ryo held out his arms toward her, but she easily dodged him and moved to stand next to Umibozu.

“Saeba-san,” Miki said, putting her face in her hand.

“Hmph, what else can you expect from a pervert like him?” Umibozu said, turning his head.

Saeko watched the scene in front of her with amusement. She knew that all of them were grateful that Ryo had not died in his mission to wipe out the Black Army and save Kaori, and that Ryo was actually touched by their concern for him, even though he acted the same as always.

“Ryo, would you like me to take you in to Kaori?” she said. Ryo shook his head, and to Saeko’s shock, he slowly lifted himself out of the wheelchair, wincing every second, and got to his feet.

“I need to speak to her alone,” he said, his voice unsteady with pain.

“Ryo, you shouldn’t do that,” Reika said. “You shouldn’t be walking right now.”

“It’s all right, Reika-chan,” Ryo said quietly, a slight smile on his face. “Don’t worry so much.”

He then limped toward the room and slowly walked in, closing the door behind him. The rest of them moved near the door and stared silently at room that had been closed off to them.

* * *

 

After shutting the door, Ryo groaned and leaned against the wall, holding his leg. The ache in his thigh had grown to an agonizing throb, but he tried his best to ignore it and push past the pain. He did not want to be helpless while confronting Kaori nor did he want to call too much attention to the wound she had given him. Thus, even though he knew that it was unwise, he decided to dispense with the wheelchair or even crutches while he helped her regain her memories.

Ryo looked over to the bed to see that Kaori was currently asleep, and he limped over to sit in a chair next to her bed. He reached out for one of her hands, but was shocked to discover hesitation gnawing at him.

‘ _What am I afraid of?’_ he asked himself. He puzzled over this question for only a moment more when it finally occurred to him what was making him so uneasy.

Ryo reached down and placed his hand onto his bandaged leg. He was all too aware that part of the reason he had been so insistent that Saeko never bring up the fact that Kaori had shot him was to try to push the memory of it from his mind. He tried reminding himself that Kaori had been brainwashed into her persona as Sarah, and that it was this disjointed, hollow persona that had shot him.

Still, none of that was enough to completely override instincts that had been a part of his nature, his way of existence since he was a child, and now Ryo found himself unable to completely banish the heightened sense of danger he felt in Kaori’s presence.

‘ _How much of what she did was just the result of the Black Army’s hypnosis…and how much of it was Kaori acting on ideas and impulses she had been carrying all this time?’_

Ryo clenched his hands into fists and looked down into his lap. He didn’t know where that question had come from, but now that it was there, he couldn’t get rid of it. The fact was, he was well acquainted with the concept of treachery. It was the reason why he constantly donned the mask of a smile and the armor of indifference. Often, he was convinced that the only reason he had been able to stay sane and continue to survive was because he was so vigilant to keep people away from the tender corners of his heart.

All of his precautions had not been enough, however, to stop Kaori from steadily and methodically smashing through each of his barriers with even more force than she applied to her hammer strikes. Ryo knew that she had reached a place in his heart where, no matter what she did, he could not bring himself to break the bond that had been formed. It was a place that had been reached by only one other person, and Ryo could not forget the black betrayal that had been perpetrated onto him by the man he knew as his father. He couldn’t but help but wonder now if he would be able to accomplish something with Kaori that, so far, he had not been able to with his father.

“No…stop…don’t come any closer….”

Ryo looked down at the bed and watched as Kaori tossed back and forth while in the grip of some dream. Her hands wildly grabbed at the sheets covering her and a sheen of sweat appeared on her face.

“No…please…I don’t want to shoot you…please don’t make me….”

Ryo’s eyes grew wide with shock when he realized what she was dreaming about. Listening to the distress and desperation in her voice, it suddenly occurred to him that it was a familiar sound, a familiar feeling to him.

‘ _It’s just like that time…that time when I was lost in the haze of angel dust….’_  

Ryo shuddered and leaned closer to Kaori. He knew that he would never forget the nightmare he had lived when he was forcibly addicted to angel dust. Memories of the people he had killed and the vicious way he had done it still appeared in his dreams and his conscious thoughts. So many lives had been mercilessly snuffed out by his own hands, and one of the worst aspects of the whole thing for Ryo was how a part of him had only been able to watch helplessly as his body performed atrocities he frantically wished he could put a stop to. 

‘ _Just like me…they took some part of Kaori and made it into something terrible…something she couldn’t control…something she probably wished she could stop.’_

Ryo closed his eyes, his hands relaxing and moving closer to the bed. The pain he had experienced back then was something he couldn’t imagine wishing onto anyone, and he remembered vividly how hard it had been for him to accept and move on from what he had done. He also remembered though, that he probably wouldn’t have been able to live with himself if it hadn’t been for the understanding Bloody Mary’s father, Norester, and the Professor had shown him during that time, and the way the both of them looked past his horrific transgressions.

It was then that Ryo found the strength to do what he knew he must in order to help Kaori find the solace she would need now.

“Kaori…Kaori, it’s all right,” he said as he gently shook her arm. “It’s all over. Wake up now.”

Kaori shuddered violently and her eyes flew open. She gasped when she realized that she was not alone, and she immediately shrank away to a corner of the bed. She took several shallow breaths before starting to calm down.

“It’s you. Ryo, isn’t it?” she whispered. “What are you doing here?” Ryo smiled at her and leaned closer.

“Yes, it’s me, Ryo,” he said. “Don’t worry. I’m here to help you get better.”

“Better?” she echoed. “I…I don’t understand.”

Kaori wiped the sweat from her brow and slumped against the wall. She stared into Ryo’s eyes for a moment before looking down at the sheets, her fingers twisting and tugging at the blanket covering her.

“The other people here, the doctors, I think, they keep telling me the same thing,” she continued. “And those other people, the ones who were here earlier, they keep telling me that they want to help me remember. But I…I don’t know if I want to remember. What if the life I actually have is even more horrible than this, this empty white space in my mind.” Kaori covered her face with her hands for a minute before finally looking up at Ryo.

“Ryo…” she said, her voice still questioning. “Every time I close my eyes, I keep seeing images and hearing voices, and I don’t know if they are just dreams or if they’re memories. And then when I wake up, I can’t remember what I thought I knew before I fell asleep. I keep thinking that I know who and what I am, but every time I think I can grasp it, it slips away again.”

“Kaori….”

“Stop it!” she nearly shouted at him. “Stop talking to me with that soft voice. Stop looking at me with those eyes, gentle eyes. I…I have to….”

 Kaori jumped out of bed and ran toward the door. She tried to turn the knob, but discovered that it was locked. She then pounded at the door with her fists and clawed at it with her fingernails.

Ryo slowly got up from the chair and staggered toward her. His breaths were short as he struggled with the pain each step brought him, but he made sure to continue to smile as he approached her. Kaori heard his footsteps and she whirled around to face him.

“No, stay away from me,” she said as she backed away. “You just want to lie to me too.”

“Kaori, I am not here to tell you what to think or what to believe,” Ryo said, his voice hoarse with fatigue and pain. “The only thing I’m going to ask from you is to trust me.” Kaori pressed herself against the wall, her eyes filling with tears again.

“Why?” she asked. “Why are you doing this? Your leg…I did that, didn’t I? I shot you…didn’t I? Why do you want to help me…after what I did to you?”

“Because…you are my partner,” Ryo replied. He then held out a hand to her, his smile growing wider.

“Partner?” Kaori repeated. “Ryo…I….”

Kaori stared at the hand offered to her. At first Ryo thought that she was going to try to run away again, but then she slowly lifted one of her hands and reached for his. Her fingers gripped at his hand, and Ryo put his other hand over hers.

“Don’t be scared of the truth,” Ryo said. “Because the truth will make all of this confusion go away. Then you won’t have to live like this, not knowing from one moment to the next what you should believe.”

“I won’t be scared,” Kaori nodded. “Ryo, please, tell me what the truth is.” Ryo shook his head and took both of her hands into his.   

“Remember, I’m not here to tell you that,” he said. “You’re the one who is going to figure out what the truth is because the only thing that really matters is what you decide the truth actually is.”

Kaori bowed her head and took a couple more steps toward him, resting her forehead against his chest.

“Then…will you stay with me while I figure out what the truth is?” she asked. “I don’t want to be alone anymore.” Ryo put his arms around her and Kaori snuggled against him.

“You won’t be alone,” he said. “I promise.”

* * *

 

Several hours later, Takahara walked into the room to find Ryo sitting next to the bed, and Kaori fast asleep under the blankets. He opened his mouth to speak, but Ryo raised a hand and pointed toward the hallway. Takahara nodded and backed out of the room while Ryo carefully stood back up and limped out into the hallway to join him.

“Saeba-san, aren’t you supposed to be resting in your own room?” Takahara asked as Ryo closed the door behind him. “The doctors I talked to told me that you had been in surgery not too long ago.”

“It’s not that serious,” Ryo grinned at him as he leaned against the wall. “Especially since I have all these wonderful angels in white uniforms checking in on me every couple of hours.”

“Yes well,” Takahara coughed. “Anyway, I have not had the chance yet to thank you for protecting my daughter from those terrorists. I talked to the professional who I hired to retrieve my daughter, and he told me who you were. Your reputation precedes you Saeba-san.”

“Ah ha ha, well you can’t believe everything you hear,” Ryo laughed as he put a hand to the back of his head. “Some people just tend to overreact to how I show affection.”

“That isn’t what I was referring to,” Takahara sighed. “Anyway, while I might not agree with your conduct and methods, the fact remains that you have done me and this city a great service by helping to take out the Black Army, and I wanted to express my gratitude. If there is anything you need, please do not hesitate to ask.”

“There is one thing,” Ryo said, his expression becoming more serious.

“Name it.”

“I want you to leave your daughter, Rumi, alone,” Ryo said.

“What are you saying?” Takahara spluttered. “Wait; don’t tell me that you are still thinking of pursuing her? Because that is the one thing that I will not….”

“No, no I don’t stand a chance of winning against the man she loves,” Ryo said with a trace of a smile. “What I’m asking is that you let her be happy with him. He seems like a kind, respectable person. I see no reason why she shouldn’t be with him.”

“Maybe on the surface he is,” Takahara said. “But then, what if he has some ulterior motive for being with her? Or what if it turns out that he is not truly the best suited man for her?”

“That’s the risk everyone faces when they fall in love, isn’t it?” Ryo asked. “That it could go badly, that it may not work out, that maybe someone will turn out to be something far less than they appeared to be. I guess that risk is the price everyone has to pay to have that kind of happiness.”

“Still…” Takahara mumbled, looking down at the floor. Ryo straightened his postured and turned to go back into Kaori’s room.

“I suppose I can’t tell you what to do,” Ryo sighed. “But maybe while you’re thinking about all this you should consider Rumi’s mother.”

“Her mother?” Takahara said. “What does she have to do with this?”

“You were happy with her, weren’t you?” Ryo asked. “Would you want to deprive Rumi of that happiness? And if you weren’t, do you really want to condemn your daughter to that same misery?”

Takahara’s jaw dropped open as Ryo opened the door and walked back inside.

* * *

 

A few minutes later, Ryo was back to sitting next to Kaori’s bed. His leg continued to throb and was becoming progressively harder to walk, but Ryo refused to consider going back to his room to lie down. When the others came to visit, he and they had noted that every time Kaori woke up and spent some time with him, she seemed to move closer to regaining her memory. As a result, Ryo felt compelled to stay with her as much as possible.

He took several deep breaths in an attempt to relax and tolerate the pain in his leg when a groan from the bed interrupted his concentration. He looked up to see Kaori opening her eyes and yawning.

“Ryo…you’re still here?” she said. “Aren’t you tired?”

“Not really,” Ryo smiled at her. “How are you feeling?”

“Better I think,” she said as she sat up in bed. “I think… no I’m sure that I know that I am Kaori Makimura now and not Sarah. But…the problem is, I’m not entirely sure who Kaori Makimura is.”

“Don’t worry,” Ryo said. “I’m sure it will come back to you before long.”

“I hope so,” Kaori replied. “Say Ryo, I thought I heard you talking to someone in the hallway. Was that another friend of mine?”

“No, actually he was a client of Umi-chan’s,” Ryo said. “And in a way, he was a client of mine as well.”

“A client of yours?” Kaori repeated. “What do you mean?”

Ryo went on to explain the basics of Takahara’s and Rumi’s story while making sure to leave out the parts where Rumi spent the night in his bed and when Kaori tried to kill Rumi. As he finished telling her all of this, he noted that her eyes had become downcast and saddened.

“How horrible,” Kaori said. “I hope you won’t tell him where Rumi is now.”

“Why do you say that?” Ryo asked, raising an eyebrow. “He is her father.”

“But he’s trying to stop her from being with the man she loves,” Kaori replied. “He’s trying to destroy her happiness.”

“I don’t think he’s trying to hurt her,” Ryo said. “I think he’s just trying to protect her. After all, his position in the government makes it so that there will be people who could try to manipulate or hurt her as a way to get to him.”

 “But that’s not really protecting her,” Kaori insisted. Ryo looked over at her, and Kaori blushed slightly and lowered her head.

“I suppose I don’t really know Rumi or her father,” she said. “But I’m a woman too, and I understand how she probably feels. And I know that being forced away from the one you love is one of the worst things you could do to someone. Whatever Takahara thinks he is protecting his daughter from, I’m sure it doesn’t compare to that kind of torment.”

“Even if he’s trying to save her life and protect her wellbeing?” Ryo asked.

“How can he honestly think he’s protecting her wellbeing if he’s willing to break her heart to do it?” Kaori said. “And what kind of life is she going to have if she’s always alone? I know that if I were given that choice, I would rather risk living and being with the one I love rather than play things completely safe just because it might give me a few extra moments to survive…because living will always be more important than just surviving.”

Ryo blinked hard and looked away toward the floor. Even though he knew that she was talking about Rumi and criticizing her father, he couldn’t help but feel like she was also talking about herself and admonishing him as well. During this whole affair, he had been convinced that being with him was the cause of her misery, but now he began to wonder if perhaps the reverse was true: if it was the continued distance he had enforced that was causing so many problems for her…and for him.

“Ryo?” Kaori said. “What is it? Why are you smiling like that?”

“Sorry,” Ryo said as he let out a soft chuckle. “It’s just…What you said, how you were just then, it was very much like the Kaori Makimura I know.” Kaori smiled back at him in return and began to blush again.

“Excuse me, Saeba-san?”

Both Kaori and Ryo turned to see a nurse walk hesitantly into the room.

“The doctor asked me to check on your leg, Saeba-san,” the nurse said. “And he wanted me to remind you that it isn’t good for you to be spending so much time out of bed.”

“Ryo, she may have a point,” Kaori said. “Maybe you should….”

Kaori was about to say more, but was stopped by the sight of Ryo bouncing out his chair and rushing over to grab the nurse’s hands.

“Ah your hands are so soft,” he grinned as he rubbed them against his cheek. “Say, after you’re done with this, maybe you could give me your phone number so later we can….”

“Saeba-san,” the nurse interrupted as she tried to wriggle out of his grasp. “Please sit down so I can look at….”

“Aw, don’t be that way,” Ryo pouted. “I’ve asked all the other nurses, but they have all been so cold.”

“Saeba-san….”

“Come on, just let have one cup of tea with you. Just one. Come on, don’t….”

Ryo was about to say more, but before he could, a giant hammer smashed him into the floor. The nurse ran out of the room, and Kaori stared at Ryo, astonishment on her face.

“Ryo, I…sorry,” Kaori said. “I don’t know why I just did that.”

“Ha ha,” Ryo said as he crawled back up into the chair. “That is just like the Kaori Makimura I know too.” Seconds after settling back in his chair, the doctor stormed into the room.

“Saeba-san,” he barked. “That is the fourth nurse I’ve sent to check on you, and the fourth time they have failed to adequately check on your condition. I ask that you stop being so difficult and allow us to treat you.”

“Ah ha ha, sorry,” Ryo laughed. “It’s fine, though. See, I’m getting around just fine. I just need to keep resting here and having those angels in white look in on me once in a while and I will be fine.”

“Saeba-san, I know that Detective Nogami and Takahara-san are in charge of your care and Makimura-san’s,” the doctor said. “But if you persist in driving away all the nurses, I will have no choice but to confine you to your room and put you on a twenty-four hour watch. Now, I’m going to spend the next few hours trying to find a nurse who will be willing to risk checking on you, and when she shows up, you better cooperate.”

The doctor walked out of the room, slamming the door behind him. Ryo slumped down in his chair and sighed. A part of him wondered if perhaps returning to his room would be a good idea due to how tired and woozy he felt, but as soon as he glanced over at Kaori, who had her face in her palm, he changed his mind.  By this point, every time he turned around, more and more of who Kaori used to be seemed to filter back into her, and he did not want to do anything that could slow this progress.

 “Ryo, are you always this much trouble?” she asked.

“Trouble?” Ryo said, putting a finger to his chin. “I guess I never thought of it that way.  I always saw it as making things more interesting.” Kaori let out a sigh and then looked up at him with a slight smile.

“Well, I suppose you aren’t wrong about that,” she said. “And Ryo.”

“Hmmm?”

“Thank you,” she said. “For staying with me this whole time. I’m sure that it couldn’t have been comfortable for you.”

“Ah, don’t worry about it,” Ryo said. “It’s boring being alone in my room anyway. And besides….” Ryo grabbed an apple from a basket sitting next to Kaori’s bed and took a huge bite out of it.

“If I were stuck in my room, I wouldn’t have anything like this to eat,” he continued as he chewed. “Miki-chan, Reika-chan, and Saeko haven’t been nearly as nice about sending me any fruit baskets.”

Kaori let out another sigh and yawned before laying back down. Almost as soon as her head touched her pillow, she closed her eyes and fell asleep again. Ryo smiled and leaned back and stared up at the ceiling. He remembered how the doctor said that Kaori would probably spend a lot of time sleeping off the aftereffects of the drugs once she had a chance to relax, and he was glad to see things progressing the way they were expected to. He imagined that, soon, Kaori would be back to normal, and the two of them could resume their normal lives.

Ryo felt his eyelids grow heavy, and he decided to not fight the sensation this time. He soon fell unconscious and started to snore lightly.

* * *

 

Another couple of hours later, Kaori opened her eyes and blinked them several times as she sat up. She looked around at the room for a moment, confused, but then she started to remember why she was there.

‘ _That’s right,’_ she mused. ‘ _They brought me here after Ryo and Umibozu-san defeated the Black Army. Ryo…they had kidnapped me and he rescued me….’_

Kaori looked over to find Ryo asleep in the chair beside her bed. She realized that she remembered being treated by the doctors here, being visited by her friends, and Ryo staying with her all this time, but she had no real memory of her time as the Black Army’s captive.

‘ _The doctors…they said that I didn’t remember who I was. That I thought that I was someone else. How long did I think that?’_

Kaori then looked down at the bandages on one of Ryo’s legs and noted that there was a spot of blood that had seeped into them.

‘ _Ryo, he was hurt? He was hurt trying to save me? How did that happen?’_

Kaori scooted closer to Ryo and saw that his face had an unnatural pallor to it and that his breathing was somewhat labored. Even as he slept, he appeared to be in pain, and Kaori wondered how long this had gone on.

“Ryo,” she said, touching his arm. “Ryo, wake up.”  Ryo groaned and cracked his eyes open. Once he did, he put a smile on his face.

“Kaori….I….”

“Ryo, what are you doing there?” Kaori asked. “You were hurt, weren’t you? You should be in bed.”

“Well I keep trying,” Ryo grinned. “But so far, none of the nurses will agree to join me.” Kaori frowned and shook her head.

“Idiot,” she said. “Have you been harassing the nurses here this entire time?”

“No, of course not,” Ryo said, holding up his hands. “I did have to sleep once in a while.”

“Ryo,” Kaori frowned at him. Ryo flinched and smiled even more, and Kaori found it difficult to stay mad at him, especially considering how much she imagined he had done for her over the last couple of days.

“Kaori-san, how are you feeling?”

Kaori looked up to see Miki and Umibozu walking into the room, and she smiled as they walked over to her.

“Much better, thank you, Miki-san,” Kaori replied. “Though…I don’t really remember much of what happened with the Black Army.”

“Probably just as well,” Umibozu muttered.  

“Well, I brought you some more fruit,” Miki said. “Since someone around here seems to be eating most of it before you get a chance to touch it.” Ryo giggled and stood up onto wobbly legs.

“Kaori-kun can have the fruit,” he said as he shuffled over to Miki. “I’d much rather have a mokkori gift basket myself.”

 Kaori was about to make a remark about what exactly a mokkori gift basket would entail when she noticed that Ryo was beginning to shiver. It was then that she looked down and noticed that the bandage on his leg had more blood seeping into it.

“Ryo,” she gasped, pointing. “Your leg.”

“Huh?”

All of them glanced down at Ryo’s leg and noticed the growing blood stain. Ryo put his hand over it and started to sway.

“Heh,” Ryo smiled. “I guess I should have tried harder to get one of those nurses to….”

Ryo moaned, his eyes fluttering shut and he dropped downward. Before he could hit the floor, however, both Miki and Umibozu caught him and lowered him down onto his back.

“That idiot,” Umibozu grumbled. “He must have torn some of his stitches. Miki, get one of the doctors.” Miki nodded and bolted out of the room. Kaori jumped up from the bed and knelt down beside Ryo.

“Ryo? Ryo!” Kaori said, grabbing his arm. “Umibozu-san, is he….?”

“Don’t worry,” Umibozu said. “He just fainted from exhaustion and minor blood loss. He will be fine once they repair his stitches and he has a chance to rest. It’s just a question of getting this moron to actually follow the doctor’s orders.”

Kaori felt her eyes water up as she moved to hold Ryo’s hand. Umibozu didn’t say it, but Kaori knew that the reason Ryo was not in his room resting like he should was because he had made sure to stay with her and comfort her while she regained her memories and sense of self.

‘ _Ryo, you idiot,’_ she fumed inwardly. ‘ _Why did you push yourself that way? Why didn’t you try to take better care of yourself?’_

Deep down though, Kaori knew that she already had the answer, even though a large part of her refused to believe it: that it was for the same reason that she continued to stay with him, to remain devoted to him and to trust him with her life.

Miki returned with the doctor and one of the nurses, and the two of them immediately called for a gurney so they could take Ryo to an examination room for treatment. Kaori had been reluctant to let Ryo’s hand go, but she soon gave in with some encouragement from Miki.

“It will be all right, Kaori-san,” Miki said as they watched Umibozu help Ryo onto the gurney, and the doctor and nurse wheel Ryo out of the room. “Saeba-san is very strong. Something this minor won’t keep him down for long.”

“Ryo,” Kaori said, bowing her head. “He’s only as strong as he lets himself be.”

Both Miki and Umibozu blinked in surprise at her words, but Kaori barely noticed. She was too wrapped up in her own thoughts and feelings as what had just happened continued to sink in.

It was then that Kaori reached an epiphany. Ryo had risked his life, gotten himself wounded, and forsaken his own recovery all to save and protect her. Now was the time for her to be willing to make her own sacrifices and to do what was necessary to save and protect Ryo.

Now it was time for her to take care of her partner.


	10. Chapter 10

One week later, Kaori Makimura was back in the kitchen at the apartment building, making breakfast for both her and Ryo and their guests. It was somewhat of a struggle for her to remain focused on the task at hand due to her mind persistently wandering back to the events of the past few days.

* * *

 

After Ryo had collapsed in her room, Kaori had begged for a chance to speak to the doctors in charge of treating them. After requesting that they examine her again, and after getting a reluctant admittance from them that she could probably leave the hospital within a day or so, Kaori had insisted that she be allowed to stay in Ryo’s room until he was ready to return home to finish recovering.

“That idiot won’t listen to most people,” she told them. “If you try to make him stay in bed, he’ll just keep trying to find ways to get around it. And if you send nurses in to take care of him, he’ll just keeping harassing them until they lose their patience and run screaming from him. The only way you’re going to be able to get him to behave is if I’m there to keep an eye on him.”

A part of Kaori had been worried about what would happen if the doctors chose to refuse her request, but thankfully, they gave in to her demands, mostly out of exasperation with how Ryo kept aggressively flirting with all the nurses.

They moved another bed into Kaori’s room for Ryo, and then there was the anxious wait for Kaori while they tended to Ryo. Miki and Saeko tried to keep her spirits up, but despite Kaori’s insistence that she was fine; there was a noticeable tension in the room as they waited for word on Ryo’s condition. Fortunately, about two hours later, the doctors brought a still unconscious Ryo back into the room and had him placed into the bed. Kaori shuddered at how pale and motionless Ryo was with slight movement in his chest and a soft snore being the only things that indicated that he was merely sleeping instead of being in a far more critical condition.

“We repaired his stitches and put fresh bandages on his wound,” the doctor informed them. “Sadly, we ended up needing to give him a little more blood since he had bled out some and we didn’t want to risk anything in his weakened condition. We also gave him a mild sedative so he will stay asleep for a while longer. It’s imperative that he spend at least a couple days resting as much as possible so he can recover from the shock and strain he’s put his body through.”

“We understand,” Saeko had responded. “And we will do our best to make sure he does what he is supposed to this time.”

Kaori had nodded along with her, but had not said much else for the rest of the day. Instead, she sat down next to Ryo’s bed and spent most of the time watching Ryo slumber. She couldn’t remember ever seeing him in a state like this, and it frightened her far more than the persistent gaps in her recent memory did.

‘ _Ryo’s work is so dangerous,’_ she pondered. ‘ _This kind of thing…things like this…could happen at any time. So why didn’t I think about it more before now?’_

Kaori reached over and held Ryo’s hand again. Even though she had asked herself that question, she knew that she already had the answer: because up until now, she had often comforted herself with the idea that Ryo was invincible. Believing in something like that made it easier to brush aside any hesitation she might have over bringing him dangerous jobs to work on. It alleviated the fears she would often have when he confronted their or their clients’ enemies, especially when they tried to kill Ryo. It made it so she did not have to face the reality that Ryo frequently put his life on the line, not only for their clients, but often for her.

Kaori knew that it would be simple to continue to live in that kind of stubborn obliviousness, to continue to refuse to open her eyes to the life Ryo lived and the danger he faced constantly. To take any other course of action would mean admitting to herself that she could lose Ryo just like she had lost her brother, and it would mean that she would be forced to make a decision: to continue to place most of the burden of their work onto Ryo or find a way to take at least some of that burden onto herself.

A muffled snore from the bed drew Kaori out of her thoughts, and she watched as Ryo continued to try to bury his face against his pillow even as he remained on his back. He started to roll over to his side, but Kaori immediately got up and placed her hands onto his shoulders, pressing him gently against the mattress.

“No Ryo,” she whispered. “If you do that, you could tear at your wound again. Please…just lie still.”

Kaori saw his eyes move back and forth under his eyelids, and for a moment she thought he was going to open them. But then his head flopped back against the pillow, and he relaxed back down into the bed, his movements stopping. Kaori continued to hold him in place for another moment. She wasn’t entirely sure why she was doing it, and she soon started to blush at how she was caressing his shoulders. Still, there was something about this physical contact that was comforting to her. Eventually though, she let go and drew his blanket up closer to his shoulders. She then sat back down and let out a long sigh.

“Even asleep, you’re going to be trouble, aren’t you?” she asked him. She then smiled and shook her head. Her eyelids felt heavy. She wanted to sleep, but she also did not want to leave his side again. For the briefest of moments, she wished she could lie beside him to sleep, but she then put a hand back over her face.

‘ _Moron, what on earth are you thinking? You know what would happen if you did something like that,’_ she told herself. ‘ _That mokkori idiot would be all over you as soon as you fell asleep. He can’t help himself.’_

_‘Still….’_

Kaori reached over and brushed some stray locks away from his forehead. She had often thought that Ryo had the look of a child when he was asleep, and this time was no different.  She wondered how that was possible given the way he was able to terrify most of the criminal world with just a glance and the way he relentlessly pursued one perverted desire after another when he was awake. Despite all of that, Kaori could not deny that there was a certain innocence to Ryo that was clearly visible on his face while he dreamed…at least until he started to giggle and grope at his pillows while in the middle of one of his less chaste dreams.

Kaori moved her chair close to the bed. She thought back to before the Black Army appeared in their lives and to the argument they had had before she had walked out of his apartment with the intention of walking out of his life. Looking back at it now, she was confident that she would have returned before too long to work things out with Ryo and soon realized that she was never truly serious about walking away from him. She did wonder now, however, if Ryo had thought that she had been serious about leaving.

_“He’s only as strong as he lets himself be.”_

Kaori blinked and let out another sigh. At the time, she had not been entirely sure where that statement had come from, but it had felt completely natural and correct to say. The more she thought about it though the more she realized the truth behind her own words. Ever since she had become his partner, she had seen brief flickers of his vulnerability and moments when his strength seemed to crumble slightly, usually when he received some kind of reminder of how separate he was from the rest of the world. It was those times, however, when Kaori also felt a strong measure of frustration with him.

“Idiot, how many times do I have to tell you that I’m not ever going to stop being your partner before you actually listen to me?” she asked him. “Why do you keep acting as if one day I’ll just disappear forever and leave you alone? Why can’t you stop being such a moron and pay attention to the stuff I try to tell you for a change?”

Ryo began to stir again, his hands moving out from under his blanket as they were looking for something to hold onto. Kaori decided to calm him by placing both of her hands over one of his. She smiled as her fingers ran back and forth over the back of his hand, and he grew still again.

“But I suppose this is just part of my work as your partner,” she added, her voice soft. “I will just have to keep at it until you finally learn something…but don’t think for a moment that this means that I’ll stop using my hammers when needed.”

Kaori smiled even more at her words before letting out a yawn. She was growing wearier with each moment. She looked back at her own bed for a few seconds, but then shook her head. Part of the reason she did not want to go back to sleep was because, when she didn’t have dreams full of fragmented memories, she experienced half-formed nightmares, nightmares of being manipulated and controlled by the Black Army. Sitting here with Ryo gave her some relief from the anxious feelings those nightmares produced, and she did not want to let go of that comfort.

Kaori gulped and tightened her grip on Ryo’s hand. She only saw one way to truly rest. It also happened to be the one thing she was the most nervous about in this situation.

‘ _Ryo, I swear, if you grab at me even once, I will make sure to pull out the largest hammer you have ever seen,’_ she said to herself silently.

Kaori’s face turned scarlet as she got up from the chair and carefully laid down beside Ryo on the bed, making sure to keep a couple of inches between them. She continued to hold onto his hand while curling up onto her side. At first, she wondered if she could really be comfortable in this position. Soon, however, she felt herself relax, her eyes drifting closed.

“Good night, Ryo,” she whispered. Kaori thought for a second that he was squeezing her hand in response, but as she fell asleep, she reasoned that he was simply continuing to be restless as he slept.

* * *

 

The next couple of days had a very routine feel to Kaori, despite the fact that both she and Ryo were in the hospital.

 Kaori would drop by Miki and Umibozu’s place in the back rooms of the Cat’s Eye café and use their kitchen to make meals for her and Ryo to share. In between meals and periods when Ryo slept, Kaori visited with their friends. When Ryo was awake, she would make sure to keep him in line whenever a nurse was forced to check up on him. Once in a while, the doctors would question if it was prudent of Kaori to continue to use hammers on Ryo while he was recovering, but protests from the nurses and their own apprehension over becoming the new target of Kaori’s anger were enough to silence their concerns.

A day or two after Ryo woke up again; Kaori took on a new responsibility with Umibozu and Miki in overseeing the repairs to the apartment building.

Upon seeing the damage the first time, Kaori actually felt her eyes fill with tears. She had learned from Reika that she had been the one to place a bomb that caused all of this and the guilt over what she had done gnawed at Kaori for days after that. Umibozu had been the one to help her work through her gloom when he informed her that Ryo had somehow made arrangements to have the building repaired.

“Don’t ask me how he was able to get the money or the manpower to do this,” Umibozu had told her. “And I doubt that he would explain it to you either if you were to ask him. But he apparently called in some favors and told these people that you, I, and Miki would be supervising the work on the building. So, perhaps it would be best for you to focus your energy on getting the place back to normal rather than dwelling on things that can’t be changed anyway.”

Kaori took Umibozu’s words to heart and spent whatever time she could spare from the hospital taking care of Ryo into straightening the apartments back into something livable.

* * *

 

Kaori finished her preparations and began to cook the food. She had put so much into keeping an eye on Ryo and working on the cleanup at the apartments, she had had little time to reflect on much of anything. It wasn’t until it was time for Ryo to go home.

* * *

 

After four more days at the hospital, the doctors were finally willing to release Ryo with the strong recommendation that he spend at least another week, if not two, recovering in bed. Kaori made sure to listen as closely as she could to their instructions for her to monitor Ryo and tend to his leg while simultaneously preventing Ryo from making suggestions to one of the nurses about how he could be persuaded to spend another week in bed. After a needed hammer strike and a brief meeting with Saeko to ensure that no complications from this hospital stay would arise, Kaori ended up driving Ryo back to the apartment building.

As Kaori pulled up to their home, she noticed how Ryo stared at the building and at the top couple of floors in particular which were still in the process of being repaired. Her hands gripped the steering wheel, but she made sure to smile and even laugh a little in embarrassment.

 “I…I know it looks bad, but don’t worry,” she told him. “They’ve taken care of the area above your bedroom and most of your floor. It’s mainly the top floor and sections of the roof that still need work. It will all be back to the way it was before in just a few more days.”

“Ah,” Ryo nodded. Kaori pulled the car into the garage and fidgeted for a moment more before getting out and helping Ryo out of the car. The two of them took the elevator up to Ryo’s floor, and Kaori couldn’t help but be pleased at Ryo’s evident surprise at how intact and neat everything looked as they walked in.

“See, I told you that everything would be fine,” Kaori laughed again. She watched Ryo hobble into the front room area with his crutches and silently take in the sight in front of him. He stood in the middle of the room for a full minute before walking toward the stairs leading to his bedroom.

“Ah Ryo, you don’t have to stay in bed here if you don’t want to,” Kaori said. “I could make you a place on the couch and you could relax there and watch TV or….”

“No, I actually am kind of tired,” Ryo said with a faint smile. “I think I’ll take a nap.”

Before Kaori could say another word, Ryo carefully navigated the stairs up to his bedroom and limped into his room silently, closing the door behind him. Kaori hung her head and laughed again.

‘ _I’m being stupid,’_ she told herself. ‘ _After everything Ryo’s been through…and after all the stuff I probably did while I thought I was Sarah…it’s no surprise that Ryo wants to spend time to himself, away from me. I mean, look at what I did to his home….’_

Kaori sighed, her shoulders slumping. She marveled at how she actually longed for things to go back to normal when just a few days ago she had been longing for things to change.

‘ _I suppose I got my change after all. What is it they say about being careful about what you wish for….?’_

Kaori let out another long sigh before straightening her shoulders and looking back up. She didn’t see many options, so she decided to go with the one that always seemed best to her: to work. She grabbed her apron out of the closet and put it on.

‘ _It’s not untidy in here, but it probably isn’t as clean as it usually is,’_ she thought. ‘ _So I might as well take care of that.’_

Kaori then spent the next three hours cleaning the apartment thoroughly. Once she was done, she then took a trip to the grocery store to buy some food. When she got home, she noted that Ryo was still in his room.

Dejected, but still determined to do what she could, Kaori put the groceries away and prepared dinner. Once it was close to done, Kaori realized that she had no choice but to break the silence that had formed between them ever since she brought Ryo home. She crept up the stairs and toward the door to his bedroom with cautious hesitant steps. She then stared at the door to his room for almost a minute before tapping it with her knuckles.

“Ryo?” she said as she cracked the door open. “Are you awake? Dinner’s is just about ready.”

She was about to say more when a loud snore interrupted her. She blinked hard and walked closer to the bed to see Ryo sprawled out on his back, fast asleep. She leaned closer and opened her mouth to try to wake him when she was suddenly struck by how deeply he was slumbering. She blinked hard as that thought sank in.

‘ _Even sedated, he didn’t sleep like this. Come to think of it, most of the time he was at the hospital, he looked like he could wake up at any time whenever he did try to rest. It’s…it’s almost as if he couldn’t relax…until now that is….’_

Rationally, Kaori was able to guess part of the reason why that was. As mentioned by some of their more astute clients, Ryo’s home was actually more secure in location and construction than most places in Shinjuku and had been modified for extra security. Although it wasn’t always at the front of her mind, it did sometimes occur to Kaori that his home was probably one of the few places where Ryo could completely relax with some measure of assurance of his own safety. In most other places, Ryo had to be on guard of all the possible ways and means that one of his enemies could get to him.

‘ _Was he really just tired after all?’_ she mused. ‘ _Just tired of having to be vigilant in such a public place like that and of not having a chance to really relax? And being wounded, he probably has to be extra cautious….’_

A lopsided smile appeared on Kaori’s face. Despite the fact that she was working in the professional underground herself now and spent so much time by his side, she continued to wonder just how Ryo was able to live the way he did while still seeming to act spontaneous and carefree. She then remembered the reason why she had come up to his room, and she leaned down to shake him by the shoulder.

“Come on, Ryo, wake up,” she said. “Dinner’s done and it’s time to eat. Hey!”

Kaori shook him a little harder, and Ryo finally stopped snoring and began to stir. He turned his face toward her, and Kaori was stunned at the serene look he had in his eyes once he opened them. He inhaled deeply through his nose.

“Kaori…is that oden?” he asked her.

“Yes,” she nodded, turning her head away slightly. “It looked like it was going to be rather cold tonight, and I thought you might be hungry from your trip back home and all.”

She dared a glance back down at him and was surprised again by the warm smile on his face. Kaori felt her face growing hot.

“What’s with that smile?” she stammered. Kaori then noted a very slight tick in Ryo’s expression before his smile turned into a wide grin brimming with lechery.

“I just remembered that I accidently made a date with that cute nurse, Rei-chan on the same day I had set something up with Riko-chan,” he giggled. “And I’m wondering if there is any way if I could get them both to….”

Ryo immediately stopped talking, however, when a giant steel hammer appeared in Kaori’s hands.

“Ryo,” she said, a little too sweetly. “Do you really want to know what will happen if you finish that sentence?”

“Not, not really,” he laughed, a giant bead of sweat falling off his brow. “Wow, I am hungry. I think I’ll go ahead and eat that oden now and just hope that it won’t turn my stomach too much this time.”

“Ryo,” Kaori growled at him. Ryo whimpered and scrambled out of bed, grabbed his crutches, and scampered out of the bedroom.

‘ _If only he was that speedy and tenacious while working on our cases,’_ she sighed as she followed him back out toward the front room area.

* * *

 

The meal finished, Kaori began to put food onto some plates and placed them on the table for Rumi and Kazuya to eat before taking a tray of it up to Ryo’s room for him to eat while still recuperating in bed. After she finished giving it to him, she joined Rumi and Kazuya for a brief meal before going back into the kitchen to prepare some tea. While she was there, she reflected on how happy Rumi seemed to be with her lover.

‘ _To go through such an elaborate farce and face so much danger just to be with the one she loves,’_ she smiled to herself. ‘ _I wonder if Kazuya realizes just how much she loves him.’_

Kaori watched the tea kettle as she thought about her own chaotic life. She knew that it would be easy to attribute all of the reasons why she stuck with it and enjoyed it to her work and to the satisfaction she felt at being able to help people, but she also knew that if she did, she would be lying to herself. She was painfully aware that many of those reasons had to do with the man who was currently resting in his room. It was then that she wondered if Ryo was aware of how she felt about him. As soon as she thought it though, her face turned bright red and she shook her head.

‘ _What am I thinking? What I feel for Ryo is not anything like what Rumi feels for Kazuya…it’s not the same at all. Ryo’s my partner. That’s all.’_

_‘Isn’t it?’_

The whistle of the kettle interrupted Kaori’s thoughts and she began to pour the water into the cups. Every time Kaori thought she had a true sense of her feelings about Ryo, those feelings seemed to morph and shift into something else, something more elusive and perhaps more intense than Kaori wanted to believe. She suspected that a good portion of that was fear of what would happen if she admitted to and allowed herself to become fully aware those feelings, but most of the time she was able to brush that idea aside. To do anything else would be too difficult in the face of Ryo’s indifference to her as a woman.

She served the tea to Rumi and Kazuya and smiled as Rumi thanked her and Ryo for helping her father understand their relationship. Kaori had been a little surprised by her words, but she smirked to herself at how much Ryo was truly a romantic at heart no matter how much he tried to deny it.

“Kaori-san, don’t you remember anything from when you thought you were Sarah?” Rumi then asked her.

The idea that she never wanted to remember anything from that time was at the tip of Kaori’s tongue, but she chose to continue to smile instead of reveal any of that to Rumi.

“No, not really,” she laughed. She then turned and felt her heart ache for a moment before something else, one other faint, but persistent memory made its way into her mind: a memory of a kiss, a kiss from a man who told her that he needed her in order for his life to have any meaning.

A kiss she was almost certain came from Ryo.

Kaori put a hand to her lips. If she concentrated, she could swear that she could still feel his lips on hers, a feeling that was far more than a tactile sensation. It was something far deeper, far more passionate than that.

‘ _Was it a dream? Or was it….?’_

Kaori smiled to herself. She had a feeling that she knew the answer, but she was also certain that she would never share it with anyone else.

After denying again that she remembered anything, Kaori was distracted by the sound of cars pulling up to the apartment building. She dashed over to the window to see Miki, Umibozu and Saeko getting out of their cars and looking up at her. Miki and Saeko each had a bouquet of flowers in their hands, and Kaori smiled even more at the sight, touched by the continued concern they showed for both her and Ryo.

Kaori decided that it was time for Ryo to get up and socialize instead of rest, and she went to his room to look for him, but was startled to find him missing. Soon, Umibozu, Miki and Saeko joined her inside and started to look for him, all of them wondering what could make Ryo want to leave in light of his injury.

A thought suddenly occurred to Kaori, and she immediately stomped outside with everyone, including Rumi and Kazuya, following her. Sure enough, Ryo was hobbling along the sidewalk with his crutches, trying to flirt with random women on the street.

‘ _Looks like that moron needs yet another lesson,’_ Kaori told herself as another hammer appeared in her hands. ‘ _It’s a good thing I have plenty of hammers because I think I’m going to need to use all of them more than once before he finally learns something.’_

Kaori brought the hammer down, smashing Ryo into the sidewalk. He screeched as she did so, and Kaori felt a brief surge of satisfaction that she had managed yet again to stop his usual perverted antics. For a moment, she was tempted to continue to fume, but her anger quickly dissipated as he watched him crawl from under the hammer and wobble back onto his feet.

“Come on,” she said, pulling him by the arm. “I’ve got the couch set up for you. You’re going back to resting until the doctor says you’re ready to work again.”

“Hey, hey careful,” Ryo pouted as he stumbled from her pulling him along. “You know, I can’t walk that fast with these crutches.”

“You seemed to be able to get around just fine a moment ago,” Kaori replied. “Now move. If you want, you can watch some TV.”

“I’d rather watch a mokkori video,” Ryo grumbled to himself.

“What was that?”

“Nothing, nothing,” Ryo gulped, waving a hand at her. “I was just thinking about how TV sounds good right now.”

Kaori smirked at him, and that smirk only grew when Ryo shifted from his awkward gait to a more careful pace with him moving his arm to hold hers for support. She let her fingers gently brush the back of his hand, she saw him blink in surprise out of the corner of her eye. Kaori then saw him smile and turn his attention to the path in front of him, and she smiled in return.

‘ _You see, it’s not so hard,’_ she told him silently. ‘ _It’s not hard at all to let yourself feel, is it?’_

Kaori sprinted ahead of him to open the door for him before wrapping her arm around his again. Neither of them would acknowledge it, but both of them were aware that they were holding hands on the trip up to Ryo’s floor.

And neither of them was in any hurry to let go any time soon.


End file.
